Palembang City elections supervisory committee (Panwas) member M. Taufik giving a response in the 2018 Palembang mayoral election results dispute, Tuesday (31/7) in the Panel Courtroom of the Constitutional Court. Photo by Humas MK/Gani.

The Palembang mayoral election results dispute hearing continued in the Constitutional Court on Tuesday (31/7/2018). Candidate Pair Number 1 Harnojoyo-Fitrianti Agustinda as the Relevant Party and the Palembang City Panwas as the Respondent gave their statements in relation to the allegation of mobilization of state civil apparatus (ASN) in the campaign of the incumbent mayor-vice mayor.

Palembang City Panwas member M. Taufik stated that they had thoroughly investigated the Petitioner\'s report and brought it to the ASN Commission. “A penalty was issued in that ASN were required to exercise caution in their speech and actions because the ASN that were reported were seen as not being neutral,” Taufik explained in the hearing of case No. 25/PHP.KOT-XVI/2018.

Taufik said that Candidate Pair Number 2 Sarimuda-Abdul Rozak as the Petitioner never reported any allegation of money politics to the Palembang City Panwas. He added that the issue of final voters list (DPT) had been processed by reporting the local KPU chairperson to the Election Organizer Ethics Council (DKPP).

The Relevant Party\'s attorney Taslim said that the allegation of mobilization of ASN groundless and unproven. He in turn alleged that the Petitioner was involved in money politics and did not meet electoral requirements because they had debts. "Most importantly, the vote margin between the Petitioner and Candidate Pair Harnojoyo-Fitrianti Agustinda at 8.61 percent is not accordance with Article 158 paragraph (1) of Law Number 10 of 2016," he stressed in the hearing presided over by Constitutional Justice Arief Hidayat. Therefore, he added, the Petitioner does not have the legal standing to file a petition.

In the same hearing, the Court also heard the election results dispute of Banyuasin Regency. Candidate Pair Number 5 Askolani-Slamet as the Relevant Party denied having mobilized ASN in the election, which was alleged by Candidate Pair Number 2 Arkoni MD-Hazwar Hamid. Attorney Darmadi Jufri called the allegation groundless because the incumbent did not have any direct relation to the ASN. "There is no party relation between the Relevant Party and [the ASN]," he stressed in the hearing of case No. 10/PHP.BUP-XVI/2018. (Arif/LA)

Translated by: Yuniar Widiastuti