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Thursday, May 27, 2021 | 13:35 WIB

The constitutional justices at the ruling hearing of the 2020 Rokan Hulu regent election results dispute, Thursday (27/05/2021). Photo by Humas MK/Ilham.

JAKARTA, Public Relations—The Constitutional Court (MK) declared the petition by Hamulian S.P.-M. Sahril Topan on the 2020 Rokan Hulu regent election inadmissible. In the ruling hearing of case No. 138/PHP.BUP-XIX/2021, Constitutional Justices Suhartoyo and Enny Nurbaningsih read out the Court’s legal considerations.

Constitutional Justice Enny Nurbaningsih said that even though the Petitioner was a regent-vice regent candidate pair in the 2020 Rokan Hulu regent election, they didn’t meet the requirements to file a petition as set forth in Article 158 of Law No. 10 of 2016. The regency’s population based on the population data in the first semester of 2020 was 559,399, so the vote margin between the Petitioner and the candidate pair with the most votes should’ve been no more than 1% of the total valid votes of the final vote count as certified by the regency’s KPU (General Elections Commission). However, the vote margin between the two stood at 42,799 votes or 18.49%.

“Therefore, the Court believes the Petitioner didn’t have the legal standing to file the a quo petition. therefore, the exception of the Respondent and the Relevant Party that the Petitioner didn’t have legal standing was legally grounded,” Justice Enny said at the hearing chaired by Chief Justice Anwar Usman, in which the litigants attended virtually.

Also read: Rokan Hulu Revote Results Challenged

Because the Petitioner was declared lacking legal standing and their petition legally groundless, for the sake of legal certainty, the Court validate the vote count recapitulation results in the KPU Decree No. 49/PL.02.6-Kpt/1406/KPU-Kab/lV/2021 dated April 24, 2021 concerning the Certification of the Revote Recapitulation Post-Constitutional Court Decision No. 70/PHP.BUP-XIX/2021 in the 2021 Rokan Hulu Regent-Vice Regent Election on April 24, 2021. It also ordered the Respondent to certify the elected candidate pair.

Also read: Rokan Hulu Election Deemed Unchanged Despite Revote at 25 Polling Stations

In the case No. 138/PHP.BUP-XIX/2021, the Petitioner requested that the Court annul the regency’s KPU Decree No. 49/PL.02.6-Kpt/1406/KPU-Kab/lV/2021 dated April 24, 2021 concerning the Certification of the Revote Recapitulation Post-Constitutional Court Decision No. 70/PHP.BUP-XIX/2021 in the 2021 Rokan Hulu Regent-Vice Regent Election on April 24, 2021. They alleged structured, systematic, and massive (TSM) violations by Candidate Pair No. 2 Sukiman-Indra Gunawan during the revote at 25 TPSs in North Tambusai Village, North Tambusai Subdistrict.

They also alleged that PT Torganda’s manager had sent a letter to instruct the local community to bring their KTP (resident ID card) and KK (family card) and to ban all employees from leaving the plantation’s premises.

Writer        : Sri Pujianti
Editor        : Lulu Anjarsari P.
PR            : M. Halim
Translator  : Yuniar Widiastuti (NL)

Translation uploaded on 5/27/2021 16:41 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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