Ismail Suko (15 June 1932 – 16 May 2011) was an Indonesian politician and civil servant. He served as a member of the

People's Representative Council The People's Representative Council of the Republic of Indonesia ( id, Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat Republik Indonesia, DPR-RI), also known as the House of Representatives, is one of two elected chambers of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR), ...

from 1987 to 1992, after previously serving in the provincial legislature and civil service of

Riau Riau is a province of Indonesia. It is located on the central eastern coast of Sumatra along the Strait of Malacca. The province shares land borders with North Sumatra to the northwest, West Sumatra to the west, and Jambi to the south. Accord ...

. He had been elected as governor by legislature vote in 1985, but was forced to resign in favor of the government-selected candidate Imam Munandar.

Early life and education

Suko was born on 15 June 1932 in the hamlet of Muaranikum, part of in what is today

Rokan Hulu Regency Rokan Hulu is a regency (''kabupaten'') of Riau, Indonesia. It is located on the island of Sumatra. Rokan Hulu Regency was created as a result of the division of Kampar Regency, of which it was previously the western half. The new Regency was estab ...

. He completed high school in 1955, and later obtained a diploma in economics and a degree in public administration.

Career

Suko began his career in government in 1956, as an employee of the State Planning Bureau in Jakarta. In 1961, he moved to become an employee of the

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

's office. He then became a high-ranking civil servant within the

Ministry of the State Secretariat The Ministry of State Secretariat () is a government ministry responsible for providing technical, administrative, and analytical support to the President and Vice President in the exercise of their state powers. The current minister of state sec ...

, and in 1968 he was appointed as regional secretary of

. Upon the expiry of this appointment in 1975, he was appointed secretary of the Riau Regional People's Representative Council.

1985 election

In 1985, incumbent governor Imam Munandar was up for reelection. The central government in

Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...

had approved of his candidacy, despite the opposition of Riau's politicians who disliked his temperament. They sent a letter to

President Suharto Suharto (; ; 8 June 1921 – 27 January 2008) was an Indonesian army officer and politician, who served as the second and the longest serving president of Indonesia. Widely regarded as a military dictator by international observers, Suharto l ...

requesting Munandar not run for a second term, Suharto outright rejecting this request. These local politicians eventually agreed among themselves not to cast their vote for Munandar, and instead to vote for Suko. While in later public statements Suko claimed that he was unaware of this plan, the plotters claimed that Suko had been briefed on this, and that he was willing to take the risk. On 2 September 1985, the day of the vote, Munandar was defeated by Suko who won 19 votes of 37. Receiving threats against his safety and fearing retaliation from the central government, Suko left

Pekanbaru Pekanbaru is the capital of Indonesian province of Riau, and a major economic center on the eastern part of Sumatra, Sumatra Island. Its name is derived from the Malay language, Malay words for 'new market' ('pekan' is market and 'baru' is new). ...

for Jakarta the following day, and was eventually pressured into resigning his candidacy by 10 September. Munandar was sworn in for his second term on 3 October 1985. After the events, the relieved Suko went on a

hajj The Hajj (; ar, حَجّ '; sometimes also spelled Hadj, Hadji or Haj in English) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried ...

pilgrimage and he was later compensated by

Golkar ) , foundation = , youth = AMPG (Golkar Party Young Force) , women = KPPG (Golkar Party Women's Corps) , newspaper = '' Suara Karya'' (1971–2016) , headquarters = Jakarta , ideology ...

by being made a member of the

in 1987.

Later life

He died on 16 June 2011 due to illness at Mahkota Hospital in

Malacca City Malacca City ( ms, Bandaraya Melaka or ') is the capital city of the Malaysian state of Malacca. As of 2019 it has a population of 579,000.https://www.dosm.gov.my/v1/uploads/files/6_Newsletter/Newsletter%202020/DOSM_DOSM_MELAKA_1_2020_Siri-81. ...

, Malaysia. After a brief public funeral service attended by thousands of Riau residents, Suko's body was buried the following day at a public cemetery in

Family

Suko was married to Roslaini binti Jadin (d. 2021), and the couple had four children by 1992. Their eldest daughter, Septina Primawati, married future governor of Riau

Rusli Zainal Rusli Zainal (born 3 December 1957) is an Indonesian former politician convicted of corruption who served two terms as Governor of Riau between 2003 and 2013. He was also previously regent of Indragiri Hilir Regency. He was sentenced to 14 years ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Suko, Ismail 1939 births 2011 deaths People from Riau Members of the House of Representatives (Indonesia), 1987 Members of the Riau Regional House of Representatives Indonesian civil servants Indonesian Muslims