Hotli Simanjuntak, Banda Aceh – The Aceh Party, founded by former Aceh Freedom Movement (GAM) combatants, finally registered its candidates at the Independent Election Commission Aceh (KIP Aceh) on Friday.

The party had threatened to boycott the poll if its demand for a postponement was not fulfilled. The poll has now been rescheduled from Feb. 16 to April 9.

The party, which nominated Zaini Abdullah and his running mate Muzakir Manaf, decided to register after the Constitutional Court ordered KIP Aceh to reopen registration for candidates.

Thousands of supporters accompanied Zaini and Muzakir to the KIP Aceh office in a convoy through the main thoroughfares in Banda Aceh on Friday as they cheered on their hopefuls.

"Let's send our bridegrooms to the aisle for the sake of the Aceh people's dignity," cried a supporter. The Aceh Party supporters swarmed the KIP Aceh office while yelling support for their candidates.

KIP Aceh, headed by Abdul Salam Poroh, greeted the candidate pair by examining their candidacy documents. "We are very happy to see our brothers who have finally registered to contest the election," said Salam.

According to Salam, the Constitutional Court's ruling asking his office to reopen the poll registration process was attributable to the struggle of the Aceh people. KIP Aceh, as the organizer, only carried out the mandate handed down by the Constitutional Court on Jan. 17, he said.

A number of regencies and municipalities in the province will also hold their respective polls simultaneously with the gubernatorial election. Dozens of regency and mayoralty leadership candidates across the province also registered themselves.

The poll in Aceh was rescheduled for the fifth time after the Constitutional Court on Jan. 17 in Jakarta ordered KIP Aceh to reopen registration for gubernatorial, regency and mayoral candidates.

Constitutional Court Chief Justice Mohammad Mahfud M.D. issued the decision in the lawsuit between KIP Aceh and the Home Ministry related to the implementation of the local leadership elections. In its ruling, the court ordered the election commission to reopen registration for another seven days.

Candidates who had earlier registered at KIP Aceh warmly welcomed the court's decision but they complained about the new rescheduling. They said that the election should have been held on Feb. 16.

"KIP has breached the court's ruling," said Thamrin Ananda, a representative of the Aceh People's Party, which endorsed incumbent Irwandi Yusuf as their gubernatorial candidate.

According to him, the Constitutional Court's decision clearly stated that the reopening of registration was to be carried out for seven days without necessarily changing the schedule which had already been set. "So, there's no excuse for KIP Aceh to postpone the scheduled election any further," said Thamrin.