http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/jilted-solo-residents-file-lawsuit-against-jakarta-governor-elect-joko/546818
Jilted Solo Residents File Lawsuit Against Jakarta Governor-Elect Joko Jakarta Globe | September 27, 2012 Solo Mayor Joko Widodo, left, extends Idul Fitri greetings to civil servants at Solo city hall in August. (Antara Photo/Andika Betha Solo, Central Java. Two Solo residents have filed a civil lawsuit against Mayor Joko Widodo, protesting his departure from the Central Java town for Jakarta, where he has presumedly won the capital’s recent gubernatorial election. Ari Setyawan and Paidi filed the lawsuit at the Solo District Court, demanding that Joko pay Rp 343 billion ($35.8 million) in compensation to Solo residents for leaving the city before his term as mayor was to end in 2015. Joko was in the middle of serving his second term as mayor after he was first elected in 2005. He officially joined the Jakarta gubernatorial race in March, and quick count results suggest that he won the election runoff on Sept. 20 over incumbent Governor Fauzi Bowo, with 54 percent of the vote. “I filed this lawsuit purely because as a [Solo] resident, I don’t want to lose Jokowi,” Ari said, referring to the governor-elect by his nickname. He spoke after a hearing on the case at the Solo District Court on Wednesday, as quoted by the Indonesian news portal tempo.co. He accused Joko of having broken his public service pledge to the people of Solo by competing in the Jakarta election. Ari denied any notion that the lawsuit was motivated by a hidden political agenda. The plaintiffs’ lawyer, Srihadi Fahrudin, said although many Solo residents supported Joko’s Jakarta election bid, others disapproved of it. “It is their right to file a lawsuit and hope for a court verdict,” Srihadi said. Joko’s lawyer Suharsono, meanwhile, called the lawsuit outrageous, saying Joko had not violated any regulations by throwing his hat into the Jakarta election ring. Joko refused to comment on the matter, saying only that his lawyer and a team from the Solo administration were taking care of the issue. Presiding judge Nurdiyatmi told Joko and the plaintiffs to reconcile and gave them 40 days to do so. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
