TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - National Defense Forces Commander General Moeldoko said on Sunday that a report about a village supervisory non-commissioned officer (Babinsa) persuading a citizen to elect certain candidate in the presidential election on July 9 was false and untrue.

"What has been stated by the reporting person has been proven not true. Community members in his neighborhood have even expressed readiness to give a testimony about it. The chief of the Election Supervisory Board (Bawaslu) has phoned me telling he refers the case to the TNI commander to settle it," he said at Halim Perdanakusuma air force base.

Moeldoko's statement was contrary to what the National Army (TNI AD) has said. TNI AD has stated that a Babinsa member has made a mistake with regard to election regulations and because of that he and his superior have been given sanctions.

The TNI commander said that the incident was not true and also was not structured or systemic.

"The TNI commander has never given any instruction (to any personnel to do it). The case, if it really happened, was only found in one location. If the case did not happen I would defend my Babinsa and state that he had never done negative things. I could assure that my Babinsa members could work well. Babinsa members are human beings and not ghosts and so people need not be afraid of them. They are also not dolls and have a feeling and an instinct and are responsible for carrying out their duty," he said.

Moeldoko said that the Babinsa officers, in carrying out their duty, may not conduct any violation. In view of that he appealed to the people to immediately take a picture of them in case they saw them violating the rule.

"If no picture of the officer is available, hold the man first and take his picture and then report him to his superior," he said.

The TNI AD earlier said that it has investigated the case of First Corporal Rusfandi persuading a citizen in Jakarta to elect Prabowo Subianto in the next election and because of that has given him a sanction by putting him under detention for 21 days.

"The TNI AD chief of staff, General Budiman, has ordered Jakarta Military Commander Major General Mulyono to investigate the case thoroughly," TNI AD spokesman Brigadier General Andika Perkasa said in a written statement received on Sunday.

The investigation into several personnel within the Central Jakarta district military command by a joint team of Jakarta Regional Military Command members had been done from Thursday until 4 a.m. early on Sunday.

"The result is that First Corporal Rusfandi who has been ordered to carry out a Babinsa duty in Cideng in the sub-district of Gambir, has not intentionally led AT (and other residents he met) to choose a certain presidential candidate," Andika said.

Rusfandi has indeed visited residents in the area which is under the responsibility of his unit to record their election preference.

"This is a mistake. When AT would not immediately give an answer when asked about his preference Rusfandi then showed a picture of a candidate from a certain political party to confirm that he would choose the person," he said.

It happened that the picture shown was that of a political party depicting a sequence election number one candidate a.k.a. Prabowo, he said.

"This is what has impressed that Rusfandi seemed to have led AT to elect a certain candidate, which was a mistake," he said.

He said the TNI AD leadership had never given any order to his men to record peoples preference for the election on July 9. No such order has also come from the Jakarta Military Commander nor the Gambir sub-district military commands chief Captain Saliman.

Andika said First Corporal Rusfandis action was his own initiative and happened because of his innocence regarding Babinsa duties as he has just been assigned to the Gambir sub-district for around a month after joining the Cavalry 6 Combat Battalion of the Bukit Barisan Military Command in Medan, North Sumatra.

"The chief of the Gambir sub-district military command, Captain Saliman as the direct superior of First Corporal Rusfandi has also been considered not carrying his duty professionally and not knowledgeable of his obligation," he said.

He said Captain Saliman had assigned First Corporal Rusfandi whose duty was actually a driver to carry out Babinsa duties without first providing him with adequate knowledge.

Captain Saliman also has been considered not trying to stop First Corporal Rusfandi's action and reprimand him, he added.

"In view of that First Corporal Rusfandi has been guilty of violating disciplinary rules because he has not carried out his duty and obligation professionally and lacked knowledge of his duty and obligation as put in Article 5 Paragraph 2 of Law Number 26/1997 regarding discipline of soldiers," Andika said.

Because of his action First Corporal Rusfandi has been put under detention for 21 days and he also will not be promoted for three promotion periods (3x6 months).

Meanwhile, Captain Saliman has been given a reprimand because of his inability to carry out his duty and obligation professionally.

"He has also been given an administrative sanction of a delay in promotion for one period (1x6 months)," Andika said.

ANTARA | SYAIFUL HAKIM | ADITIA MARULI