TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Former Spanish soccer player eyes Samosir regent post
He said he wanted to improve the quality of human resources by investing more in education and health services if he ever got a chance to serve as Samosir regent.
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
A staffer carries a ballot box in preparation for a regional election in South Aceh in this 2018 photo. (Antara/Irwansyah Putra)
Carlos Melgares Varon is better known as a professional soccer player, having played for Real Betis in the 1982-1983 season.
But the 56-year-old is now making headlines in Indonesia for his plan to run for regent in Samosir, North Sumatra. The Spanish-born Varon became an Indonesian citizen in 2008 after marrying Batak native Adriana Malau and receiving the surname Simbolon.
“I have [lived in] Samosir for 10 years. I'm concerned that there have been no significant improvements in the daily life of the Samosir people,” he said
Varon said he had big dreams for Samosir, a regency whose territory includes the entire island on Lake Toba in North Sumatra. He said he wanted to improve the regency’s quality of human resources by investing more in education and health services if he ever got a chance to serve as Samosir regent. Varon also plans to create more job opportunities.
He further expressed his intention to revitalize bureaucracy at the regent's office by assuring that only those who are qualified and competent would work in the administration and provide public services.
His ambitions were presented before the regional board of the NasDem Party in Samosir on Friday while registering as a prospective candidate for Samosir regent.
