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Preliminary hearing of the 2019 DPR-DPRD Election Results Dispute (PHPU) in the Electoral District (Dapil) of the Maluku Province on Thursday (11/7) in the Panel Courtroom of the Constitutional Court. Photo by Humas MK/Ganie.

JAKARTA, Public Relations of the Constitutional Court—The Constitutional Court (MK) held a preliminary examination hearing on the 2019 DPR-DPRD (House of Representatives-Regional Legislative Council) PHPU in the Electoral District (Dapil) of Maluku Province. The petition No. 25-01-31/PHPU.DPR-DPRD/XVII/2019 was submitted by the National Awakening Party (PKB).

PKB (Petitioner) through attorney Indra Bayu questioned a different vote acquisition by the General Elections Commission/KPU (Respondent) in Maluku 1 Electoral District. “This is detrimental to the Petitioner, due to the loss of several seats for the Petitioner due to the actions of the Respondent,” Indra explained in the hearing on Thursday (11/07/2019) at 08.00 WIB in the Panel Courtroom at the fourth floor of the Constitutional Court. The preliminary examination is carried out by Constitutional Justice Aswanto as chairman of the panel, with Constitutional Justices Saldi Isra and Manahan M. P. Sitompul on the bench.

"In carrying out their duties, the Respondent violated the principles of the elections, [which is] a manifestation of popular sovereignty that is guaranteed in the 1945 Constitution," Indra explained.

Indra said that the Respondent was clearly harmed by the actions of the Respondent who carried out the recapitulation of the vote acquisition and suspended the revote (PSU) as per the KPU Decree No. 11/HK.03.01KPTS/8171/KPU-Kota/IV/2019. "The revote should have been carried out first by the Respondent, as the revote is a recommendation by the Ambon Bawaslu [(Elections Supervisory Agency)] through the Panwascam’s [(Sub-district Elections Supervisory Committee)] recommendation in several TPS [(polling stations)] in the Maluku region," Indra said.

Indra added that there was a margin of 273 votes between PKB (9,005 votes) and the Hanura Party (9,278 votes). "If a revote was carried out, it would change the configuration of votes," Indra explained.

Next, the Constitutional Court Panel examined petition No. 175-04-31/PHPU.DPR-DPRD/XVII/2019 of the Golkar Party for 2019 DPR-DPRD PHPU in Maluku Province. Golkar’s attorney Fahri Bachmid explained the subject of the petition, which concerns inflation of legitimate votes, vote purging, and various frauds, which harmed the Golkar Party’s candidate and all votes for the Golkar Party. As a result, the Golkar Party lost seats in the House (DPR) and Regency/Municipality DPRD in Maluku Province.

"These violations occurred in South Great Kei Sub-district, Hoat Sorbai Sub-district, Little Kei Sub-district, Great Kei Sub-district, Southeast Little Kei Sub-district, West Little Kei Sub-district, and several other sub-districts," Fahmi said. Therefore, in the petitum, Golkar demanded a revote in all TPS in most of Maluku Province.

The United Development Party (PPP) submitted petition No. 109-10-31/PHPU.DPR-DPRD/XVII/2019. PPP explained that the KPU did not implement Bawaslu\'s recommendation to carry out a revote at 8 polling stations in West Seram Regency.

"There is a suspicion that KPPS [(Polling Station Working Committee)] officers damaged, decreased, and removed of ballot papers, which affected PPP’s votes in West Seram Regency," said Bagus Setiawan, one of PPP’s attorneys.

In petition of No. 201-05-32/PHPU.DPR-DPRD/XVII/2019, Reza Muhammad Nur, as the attorney of the National Democratic Party (NasDem), questioned the discrepancy between the vote acquisition data of the NasDem Party and the KPU. As a result, NasDem lost one seat in the Maluku Province DPRD. (Nano Tresna Arfana/NRA)

Translated by: MJK/YW

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