Constitutional Justice Wahiduddin Adams speaking at a webinar of the Islamic Family Law study program by the Sharia Faculty of the State Islamic Institute of Kudus, Friday (9/3/2021) from the Constitutional Court. Photo by Humas MK/Panji.

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Friday, September 3, 2021 | 15:22 WIB

JAKARTA, Public Relations—Constitutional Justice Wahiduddin Adams spoke virtually at a general study webinar for the Islamic Family Law (HKI) study program of the Sharia Faculty of the State Islamic Institute (IAIN) of Kudus on “The Contribution of Millennial Students in Guarding the Constitution” on Friday, September 3, 2021, which dean Any Ismayawati attended. He encouraged the students to actively participate in guarding the Constitution not only by studying in the campus.

He encouraged them to reflect on the roles that the youth played in the Independence. He said today’s students were faced with advances in information technology, thus must be aware of their role as agents of social change in the community.

“Being students who are studying law, [you] must understand the hierarchy of legislation in order to understand their role in guarding the Constitution,” he said alongside moderator Rahma Aulia, a lecturer at the faculty.

Justice Wahiduddin said the Constitution means the amended 1945 Constitution, which is the basic and supreme law in Indonesia’s legislation. The Constitution brought an impact in that the centralized government became decentralized and more democratic with direct elections of head of state and regions. The Constitution also contains expanded basic rights.

“In order to guard the Constitution, the young generation must be provided with morality by first learning about and understanding the 1945 Constitution by upholding the basic values within Pancasila,” he said before 300 freshmen of the 2021/2022 academic year.

Students can guard the Constitution by following closely how local regulations are discussed and drafted and being involved in the discussion, he said. That way, they can play an intellectual role in designing local regulations that fit the people’s needs.

During the Q&A session, Justice Wahiduddin responded to a question by fifth semester student Febriana Noor Afifah on the procedure to review legislation that are deemed contrary to the citizens’ constitutional rights. He explained that to file a petition, petitioners should study the Constitutional Court’s procedural law in its latest regulation. He also explained the proceedings in the Court until the ruling is passed.

“Concurring and dissenting opinions on a case occur because the justices have the right to have different reasons or opinions on a case due to their independence,” he revealed.

He then answered another student’s question on the plan to amend the 1945 Constitution. He said it was the people’s representatives’ prerogative. Constitutional justices cannot speak much of the issue in detail as it is not their place to do so. The students are welcome to learn about it in forums that the government will provide to the people to voice their aspirations.

At the end of the discussion, Justice Wahiduddin encouraged the students to study seriously and with commitment and to become good students who loved learning. He also urged them to actively and consistently participate in classes and students’ organizations in order to build their characters, so that they can provide contributions to the country.

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

Translation uploaded on 9/14/2021 12:24 WIB

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

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