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KPU chief passes away at 40
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Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laoly (right) chats with Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Minister Yuddy Chrisnandi (center) and the chairman of the General Election Commission (KPU), Husni Kamil Manik (left), before a limited Cabinet meeting on the Regional Elections Law revision at the Presidential Office in this file photo. (Antara/Widodo S. Jusuf)
G
eneral Elections Commission (KPU) chairman Husni Kamil Manik passed away late on Thursday, just as the entire country was in the midst of Eid festivities in Jakarta.
He was 40 years old and is survived by his wife and three children.
Word spread about Husni's untimely death shortly after 9 p.m. in Jakarta. He had been admitted to Jakarta's Pertamina Hospital (RSPP) earlier in the day, an official from the election authority said.
"I just spoke with Dr. Widya [Sarkawi], the director of the RSPP. Our chairman, Husni Kamil Manik, has passed away," KPU commissioner Hadar Nafis Gumay said Thursday night, offering condolences.
Hadar said he had spoken to Husni in the early afternoon, before hearing that his condition had worsened at around 7 p.m.
"Then I received information [of his death] around 9 p.m.," he said.
A notice spread through social media reported his time of death at 9:07 p.m. Jakarta time, with the underlying cause still unknown.
"It is still unclear what he was suffering, as he was admitted to the hospital all too sudden. What is clear is that he had some sort of acute infection," Hadar added.
Gerindra Party lawmaker Viva Yoga Maulana also confirmed the technocrat's death, saying Husni had briefly spoken with him before heading to the hospital.
"He briefly spoke to me about having difficulties in breathing, saying he was going to [get it checked at the hospital]," he said, as quoted by tribunnews.com.
Viva, who is Husni's legislative counterpart at the House of Representatives' election commission, said the late KPU chief had complained about breathing problems all morning.
Husni held the KPU chairmanship since 2012, having previously headed the election body's West Sumatra provincial office for four years. He was also an active member of Nadhlatul Ulama, one of the country's largest Muslim organizations. (ary)
