Muhammad Hafidz as Principal Petitioner delivering the principles of the petition revision for judicial review of the General Elections Law, Monday (30/4) in the Plenary Courtroom of the Constitutional Court. Photo by Humas MK/Ganie.

Muhammad Hafidz, an individual petitioner who affirms his legal standing as Petitioner No. 30/PUU-XVI/2018 in the revision hearing of the judicial review of Law No. 7/2017 on General Elections (Elections Law) on Monday (30/4) in the Plenary Courtroom of the Constitutional Court. According to him, it is the right for every person including the Petitioner to participate in the 2014 General Elections to maintain the original intent of the establishment of state institutions including the DPD (Regional Representative Council). 

"It would be unbalanced if the Petitioner who is not a political party functionary in the future elections compete with political party officials who have an organizational structure at village, sub-district, district, and provincial levels, especially in meeting the requirements of DPD candidates," Hafidz said before the hearing presided over by Deputy Chief Justice Aswanto, in the presence of Constitutional Justices I Dewa Gede Palguna and Saldi Isra. 

In addition, Hafidz also revised the reasons for the petition by detailing the main duties and functions of DPD in accordance with the 1945 Constitution. In addition, the Petitioner also conveyed the legal considerations of the Court on the constitutional design of the DPD and presented the table of DPD members who joined 16 political parties. The Petitioner also cited the Elections Law that affirms the requirement that DPD members should not be party functionaries. "So, the Petitioner insists this is not just an open legal policy, but really a political interest of legislators to erode the DPD as pillar of the local democracy," Hafidz explained. 

At the previous hearing, the Petitioner described his position within the DPD as a representative of the local community representing his region and declared that Article 182 letter I along the phrase "other occupations" contains obscurity of intent. That is because, as a political party functionary as well as a DPD member who have positions, duties, functions, responsibilities, and authority in the political party, he might experience conflict of interest between the two positions. Thus, he said, there is a high possibility of a conflict of interest even if the political party carrying his political aspirations does not participate in the elections. It could be because there is still a possibility for the party in question to reregister in the coming elections as an election participant. (Sri Pujianti/LA/Yuniar Widiastuti)