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Attorneys Sigit Ikhsan Wibowo and M. Sholeh for petitioners of case No. 47/PUU-XVIII/2020 revising the judicial review petition of Law on the State’s Financial Policy and Fiscal Stability for the Mitigation of the COVID-19 Pandemic,Wednesday (12/8) in the Courtroom of the Constitutional Court. Photo by Humas MK/Ifa.

JAKARTA, Public Relations of the Constitutional Court—The Constitutional Court (MK) held another hearing for the judicial review of Law No. 2 of 2020 on the Government Regulation in Lieu of Law No. 1 of 2020 on the Stipulation of the State’s Financial Policy and Fiscal Stability for the Mitigation of the COVID-19 Pandemic and/or in Order to Face Threats That Endanger the National Economy and/or the Financial System’s Stability into Law on Wednesday, August 12, 2020.

The petition No. 47/PUU-XVIII/2020 was filed by Triono and Suyanto, two village heads from Ngawi Regency, East Java Province. They argued that Article 28 paragraph (8) of the COVID-19 Law contradicts Article 23 paragraph (1) and Article 28D paragraph (2) of the 1945 Constitution. At this second hearing, attorney Sigit Ikhsan Wibowo conveyed the addition to the petitioners: previously several village heads, now 27 petitioners consisting of village consultative bodies (BPD).

The village heads, Sigit said, feel they have the right to represent their villages in and out of court and they serve to develop their villages. Meanwhile, the BPDs are authorized to discuss and approve village budget plans.

He added that Article 72 paragraph (2) of Law No. 16 of 2014 on Villages regulates village development funds. After the enactment of the Village Law from 2015-2020, villages received a portion of the budget in the form of tax revenue sharing fund, village fund sources, financial assistance, grants, etc. These are called the village financial sources, which are included in the village development funds.

"The largest source of village finance comes from the state budget, which is 10% from and outside of the regional funds listed in the a quo article. 75,000 villages receive an average of 900 million to 3 billion rupiah. This article is important and if it doesn’t apply, it will be a [huge issue] for regional heads and village officials. This article stipulates the government’s obligations toward the village,” Sigit said before panel chair Deputy Chief Justice Aswanto and panel members Constitutional Justices Wahiduddin Adams and Daniel Yusmic P. Foekh.

At the preliminary hearing, the Petitioners said they had benefitted from village funds from the central government as mandated by Article 72 paragraph (2) of the Village Law. The funds have been used for the village’s development. The Petitioners believe the enactment of a quo article would potentially stop the disbursement of such funds.

The Petitioners have only received two installments of the funds in 2020, with one remaining unclear. Sholeh said that during the COVID-19 pandemic, the funds that used to be allocated for the village’s infrastructure and community empowerment, must be allocated to villagers who are directly affected by the pandemic. The Petitioners understand that the funds might be delayed or redirected to other causes due to COVID-19, but stated that it would be problematic if village funds were to be declared null relating to state financial policies for COVID-19 mitigation and/or in order to face threats that endanger the national economy. They also believe that Article 28 paragraph (8) of the COVID-19 Law is not in accordance with Article 2 paragraph (1) letter l, which doesn’t specify that the pandemic will motivate the central government to eliminate village funds. 

Legal Standing Revised

At the same hearing, the justices also examined petition No. 49/PUU-XVIII/2020 by advocate Damai Hari Lubis. Attorney Johnson Hasibuan stated that the Petitioner had revised his legal standing, the petition’s format, and the petitum. He is challenging Article 27 paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of the COVID-19 Law. He believes that if in the future any abuse by officials regarding the implementation of the COVID-19 mitigation is discovered, the a quo article will keep him from accessing transparent, valid information on the use of COVID-19 mitigation funds. (*)

Writer: Sri Pujianti
Editor: Lulu Anjarsari
PR: Raisa Ayudhita
Translator: Yuniar Widiastuti (NL)

Translation uploaded on 8/13/2020 16:23 WIB

Disclaimer: The original version of the news is in Indonesian. In case where any differences occur between the English and the Indonesian version, the Indonesian version will prevail.

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