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Viktor S. Tandiasa representing Bayu Segara in the judicial review hearing of the State Ministry Law on Tuesday (10/12/2019) in the Panel Courtroom of the Constitutional Court. Photo by Humas MK/Ifa.

JAKARTA, Public Relations of the Constitutional Court—President Joko Widodo officially inaugurated 12 deputy ministers in eleven ministries on October 25, 2019. These positions were considered unconstitutional by the Chairman of the Forum on Law and Constitutional Studies (FKHK) Bayu Segara, who filed a material review petition of Article 10 of Law No. 39 of 2008 on State Ministries to the Constitutional Court (MK).

The preliminary material review hearing of the State Ministry Law in case No. 80/PUU-XVII/2019 was held by the Constitutional Court on Tuesday (10/12/2019). Bayu, represented by Viktor Santoso Tandiasa, stated that the deputy minister office is subjective without a clear position, authority, and function in the State Ministry Law.

"The function of deputy ministers is regulated by a presidential regulation, [which] of course is […] not in accordance with the constitutional rules, in which the duties and authority of the deputy minister are subject matter of the law. The State Ministry Law does not regulate the duties, function, authority of deputy ministers at all. This certainly can lead to arbitrariness, by giving authority to deputy ministers without involving the [House] DPR as the people\'s representatives. This is certainly contrary to the principles of the rule of law in Article 1 paragraph (3)," said Viktor before the Court chaired by Chief Justice Anwar Usman.

In addition, in the petition, the Petitioner also mentioned that the appointment of 12 deputy ministers was a subjective act of the president, who did not have a clear reason for urgency. The Petitioner considered the deputy ministerial position to have resulted in the state having to prepare special facilities, which only wasted the state budget.

Therefore, the Petitioner requested that the provisions of Article 10 of the State Ministry Law be declared contrary to the 1945 Constitution and has no binding legal force. "This will not interfere with the administration because if we look at the duties of the deputy ministers regulated in Presidential Regulation No. 60 of 2012 concerning Deputy Ministers, they are actually duties that have been and can be carried out by officials within the ministerial organizational structure as stipulated in Article 9 of the State Ministry Law," said Viktor.

Correlation of Legal Standing

The panel of justices, consisting of Chief Justice Anwar Usman as chairman with Justices Manahan M. P. Sitompul and Wahiduddin Adams as members, provided suggestions. Justice Anwar advised that the Petitioner describe the correlation between his legal standing as FKHK Chairrman and a taxpayer. "What needs to be noted is that the Petitioner as the Chairman of the Forum on Law and Constitutional Studies (FKHK). Do elaborate on the relevance of [your] legal standing in addition to being a taxpayer."

Constitutional Justice Manahan M. P. Sitompul advised that the Petitioner examine closely the Decisions No. 79/PUU-X/2011 and 97/PUU-XI/2013 because there are inconsistencies in the Petitioner\'s petition. "Case Number 79/PUU-X/2011 states that what was reviewed is actually the norm of Article 10 of the State Ministry Law, which has already been reviewed, but in its [conclusion] it says that the explanation was stated not to have any legal force. Now, […] does the petition to review the basic norm or explanatory norm? Please clarify it," he asked.

The Petitioner was given time until December 23, 2019 to revise the petition. The next session will be held to examine the revised petition. (Lulu Anjarsari/NRA)

Translated by: Yuniar Widiastuti

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