Given the recurring pattern, critics have raised concerns that the incidents may further erode public trust in local administrations and may lead to a decrease in voter turnout in the next regional election.

Dzulmi, a member of the Golkar Party, was arrested along with six other people in a string of operations by the antigraft body from Tuesday to Wednesday evening.

He has since been named a suspect of bribery alongside the Medan administration’s protocol division head Syamsul Fitri Siregar and Medan Public Works Agency head Isa Ansyari in connection with various projects and positions under the city administration.

His arrest marks the third time for the KPK to nab a Medan mayor over corruption allegations since 2005.

The dean of North Sumatra University’s Political and Social Science Department, Warjio, said the consecutive arrests left a dark mark in Medan’s history.

“All of us are very concerned and disappointed with [Dzulmi and former mayors] who could not handle their responsibilities well,” Warjio told The Jakarta Post.

The first one to be arrested was Abdillah, who served as Medan mayor from 2000 to 2008, as his second five-year term in office was cut short by his conviction.

He was named a suspect in 2007 for his involvement in graft in connection with the procurement of fire trucks. The Medan District Court sentenced him to five years in prison in 2008, but his sentence was reduced to four years after the Supreme Court accepted his appeal.

Abdillah’s successor, Rahudman Harahap, was arrested in 2014 for misappropriating Rp 1.5 billion (US$166,000) of village funds when he served as South Tapanuli regency secretary in 2005.

Rahudman is still behind bars at Tanjung Gusta Penitentiary in Medan after the Supreme Court handed him a five-year prison sentence in 2014.

Warjio said that the arrest of Dzulmi, who replaced Rahudman, could decrease voter turnout in Medan’s 2020 mayoral election.

Participation in the Medan mayoral election of 2015 was roughly 30 percent, Warjio said, making the city one of the regions with the lowest political participation in that year’s regional elections in the country.

He said the low voter turnout had been the result of Rahudman’s arrest in 2014.

“Thus, there is a possibility that voter participation in next year’s [mayoral] election will be even lower [after Dzulmi’s arrest],” he said.

Medan is among 37 cities, nine provinces and 224 regencies across the country that are set to hold regional elections next year, slated to take place simultaneously on Sept. 23.

Warjio said corruption at the city administration level was triggered by, among other factors, costly election campaigns that “trapped” elected officials to abuse their authority for their own needs.

The lack of professionals and a problematic leader recruitment system at regional working units also made it easier for state officials to get involved in graft, he said.

Besides, regional leaders with problematic track records would usually secure their positions by bribing state officials “Such a practice is still common in many areas, including Medan,” Warjio said.

Popular

Java airports grounded by low demand, poor planning

Bansos recipients found to be on list of online gamblers

‘Beyond the Plate Vol. 2’: Borderless culinary creativity