Jakarta – A number of politicians who failed to win seats at the House of Representatives in the 2009 polls claimed they were victims of a conspiracy by members of the poll body and Constitutional Court officials.
On Monday, eight former legislative candidates from various political parties came to the Constitutional Court claiming they should have been elected as legislators in 2009 but the General Elections Commission (KPU) and Court officials conspired to curb their rights.
The politicians have come forward with the allegations in the wake of a major forgery scandal implicating former Constitutional Court justice Arsyad Sanusi and former KPU member Andi Nurpati, who last year left the commission to join President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party.
Arsyad and Andi were accused of forging a letter to favor a politician from the People's Conscience Party (Hanura).
Soepriadi Azhary, also from Hanura, said the scandal was the tip of an iceberg and that election fraud during the 2009 polls may have been widespread.
"My colleagues and I have spent almost two years complaining about this issue, but no one has responded to it," he said. "Now, as the nation is gripped by the forgery case, we think it is finally time to raise our objections."
Azhary said he spoke on behalf of 16 politicians who lost out on seats at the House after the poll body scrapped them from the list of elected legislators, although the Court ruled they should have won. "The KPU ignored the Court's verdicts," he said.
On June 10, 2009, the Court ruled in favor of several political parties that requested the KPU count votes from all constituencies to determine which candidates should be awarded House seats. "I should have won a seat," Azhary said, adding that he had filed a report with the police, who he claimed practically ignored it.
The Court rulings were controversial as several politicians claimed the Court had no right to issue such rulings. The KPU, however, said it would stand by the rulings.
Azhary, from East Java's sixth electoral district, is leading a group of politicians who faced similar challenges. Initially, 16 politicians wanted to take the case to the police and the Court.
Later, only nine of them – Marissa Haque of the United Development Party (PPP), Sahril and Farok Sunge of Hanura, Sapto Murtiyono and Suhardi of the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra), Dedi Djamaludin of the National Mandate Party (PAN), Dudung of the National Awakening Party (PKB), and Supomo of the Democratic Party – continued to challenge the rulings.
"The other seven gave up to our justice system and said they didn't want to be involved any longer," Azhary said. "However, we still consider them victims of election fraud."
The politicians plan to appear at a hearing with the House's Commission II overseeing internal affairs, which has set up a working committee to probe the Andi Nurpati case and so-called "election mafia" practices in the country.
"We want to get the support – perhaps in the form of a letter of recommendation – from the Court before we meet the House members," Azhary said.
Court spokesman Akil Mochtar said the Court could not do much for the politicians as the dispute was now between them and the KPU.
Working committee member Ganjar Pranowo of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) said the committee would welcome the politicians' testimony. The committee claims to have found indications of widespread fraud during the 2009 polls.
"The committee will use the forgery case [at the Constitutional Court] as a platform to uncover other election fraud," committee member Arif Wibowo of the PDI-P said. (lfr)