"The Majapahit coalition casts doubts about the validity of KPU letter No. 449. We will file the suit as early as Monday (Aug 10) before the registration ends," chief of the Surabaya chapter of the Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party B.F. Sutadi said here on Saturday.
He added that the coalition held a meeting that lasted until early Saturday to discuss filing suit. The meeting was attended by representatives of six of the seven political parties -- Gerindra, Democrat, National Awakening Party (PKB), Golkar, Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and United Development Party (PPP). Only the National Mandate Party (PAN) did not send a representative to the meeting.
At the meeting, the legal division of the coalition studied the legal aspect of the Surabaya mayoral election.
"All believe that the legal product is legally flawed, including the institution recommending the reopening of the registration. The task of Bawaslu (election supervisory body) is to settle disputes and violations, instead of recommending what it has done so far," he said.
KPU has declared that the 2015 mayoral election in Surabaya was postponed to 2017 because only one pair of candidates had registered for to run in the election.
"The KPU waited until 11:59 p. m. local time (on Monday, August 3), but the candidates for the position of the mayor and deputy mayor of Surabaya, Dhimam Abror and Haris Purwoko, did not arrive at the KPU office to complete the registration process," Chairman of the Surabaya KPU Robian Arifin explained.
The only duo that signed up to contest the Surabaya mayoral election was the Tri Rismaharini and Whisnu Sakti Buana pair.
Abror and Purwoko did not register, as they failed to complete the formalities by the 11:59 p. m. deadline on Monday, Arifin stated after holding a joint plenary meeting with the Election Supervisory Committee (Panwaslu).(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
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