People Urged to Reject Money Politics

Kudus, C Java (Antara) - Dozens of people who claim to be members of the committee for clean elections staged a peaceful rally, calling on the public to reject money politics in the upcoming legislative election. During the rally, held at the Kudus square on Saturday, they unfurled banners reading "Don't dream of Indonesia being free from corruption if the people's votes can be bought," and "Money politics is the root of corruption". They also carried a number of posters reading "Reject money politics" and "Receive their money, but don't vote for them to give them a lesson." "Don't be mistaken in choosing your representatives, because they will determine the fate of the nation in the next five years," the rally's coordinator, Achmad Fikri, said in his speech. Further, he declared that if the people who have the right to vote in the coming elections want the nation to be free from corruption, they must reject money politics. If the issue of money politics remains unheeded, the country will find it more difficult to create a clean and integrated democracy, Achmad warned. He added that he feared money politics will lead to fraud in the elections and become a source for state officials to abuse their authority. (*) Reporting by Akhmad Nazaruddin Lathif