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Tuesday, March 23, 2021 | 13:07 WIB

Special panel hearing for case No. 135/PHP.BUP-XIX/2021 on Sabu Raijua regent election, Tuesday (23/3/2021) in the Plenary Courtroom of the Constitutional Court. Photo by Humas MK/Ifa.

JAKARTA, Public Relations—The Constitutional Court (MK) held a preliminary hearing for the 2020 Solok Regency election dispute on Tuesday, March 23, 2021. The special panel was chaired by Constitutional Justice Saldi Isra alongside Constitutional Justices Suhartoyo and Enny Nurbaningsih. The petition No. 135/PHP.BUP-XIX/2021 was filed by Candidate Pair No. 3 Taken Irianto Radja Pono-Herman Hegi Rdja Haba.

Attorney Yafet Yosafet W. Rissy conveyed the Petitioner’s request that the Court annul the KPU Decree No. 25/HK.03.1-Kpt/5320/KPU-Kab/I/2020 on the Certification of the 2020 Sabu Raijua Regent Election Vote Counting Recapitulation dated January 23, 2020. They believe the decree didn’t present itself because there had been process and stages beforehand. A letter by the Consulate General of the US Embassy in Indonesia dated February 1, 2021 confirmed that Orient Patriot R. Kore was a US citizen. The letter was a response to the Sabu Raijua Bawaslu letter No. 136/K.Bawaslu-SR/HK.00.021/IX/2020. Therefore, Kore’s candidacy was legally defective.

In addition, Law No. 10 of 2016 on Regional Elections doesn’t regulate disputes over the nullification of such KPU decisions. Moreover, it was already too late to raise objections to Bawaslu (Elections Supervisory Body) and/or PTUN (State Administrative Court). The Constitutional Court also didn’t specify who would have the legal standing to file the a quo petition. Yafet argued that the failure of Candidate Pair No. 2 to fulfill the formal requirements to run in the election warranted their disqualification, not inauguration.

In the petition, the Petitioner stated that Kore’s US citizenship automatically canceled his Indonesian citizenship, according to Article 23 letter a of Law No. 12 of 2006 on the Citizenship of the Republic of Indonesia. Given that Indonesia doesn’t recognize dual citizenship, Kore no longer has Indonesian citizenship. Therefore, the Respondent’s decision to certify him, a US citizen, as a candidate constitutes a serious violation of the constitutional principles in the 2020 Sabu Raijua Regent Election and of some of the formal requirements of a regional election as referred to in the KPU Regulation No. 3 of 2017 on the Nomination of the Candidates for Governor-Vice Governor, Regent-Vice Regent, and Mayor-Deputy Mayor.

Therefore, the Petitioner requested that the Court order the Sabu Raijua KPU hold a revote no later than two months after the Constitutional Court decision is passed, with only Candidate Pair No. 1 Nikodemus Nithanel Rihi Heke-Yohanis Uly Kale and Candidate Pair No. 2 Takem Irianto Radja Pono-Herman Hegi Radja Haba.

Before concluding the hearing, Justice Saldi informed all parties that the hearing would resume on Monday, March 29, 2021 at 09:00 WIB to hear the Respondent’s response, the Relevant Party’s and Bawaslu’s testimonies, and to approve evidence.

Writer: Sri Pujianti
Editor: Lulu Anjarsari P.

Translator: Yuniar Widiastuti
Editor: R.A. Indah Apriyanti
Managing Editor: Budi Wijayanto

Translation uploaded on 3/23/2021 20:45 WIB

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

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