The constitutional justices at the 2020 Yalimo Regency election results dispute hearing for case No. 154/PHP.BUP-XX/2022 to hear the KPU, Bawaslu, and the Relevant Party’s testimonies over the revote, Thursday (2/17/2022). Photo by Humas MK/Ilham W.M.
Thursday, February 17, 2022 | 17:04 WIB
JAKARTA, Public Relations—The Yalimo Regency KPU (General Elections Commission) as the Respondent testified over the revote taking place on January 26, 2022. They explained that the revote had been rescheduled due to security issues and changing schedule of grant funding from Yalimo Regency. Without the funding, the Respondent would not have been able to organize the revote. In addition, the funding could only be withdrawn on November 2, 2021. Thus, the 120-workday delay was not unconstitutional because the Respondent had to adjust to the funding’s availability, said the Respondent’s legal counsel Heru Widodo at the second hearing for the 2020 Yalimo Regency election results dispute post-revote on Thursday, February 17, 2022 in the plenary courtroom.
The case No. 154/PHP.BUP-XX/202 was, filed by Candidate Pair No. 2 Lakius Peyon-Nahum Mabel. Deputy Chief Justice Aswanto (panel chair), Constitutional Justice Suhartoyo, and Constitutional Justice Constitutional Justice Daniel Yusmic P. Foekh heard the Respondent, Bawaslu (Elections Supervisory Body), and the Relevant Party.
Formally Flawed
Heru also provided rebuttals to the Petitioners’ arguments from the previous hearing. In their objection, the Respondent argued that the Petitioners’ power of attorney was formally flawed. Their investigation showed that the letter was one that had been used in case No. 153/PHP.BUP-XX/2022, dated December 16, 2021. As such, the letter preceded the object of dispute of the case No. 154/PHP.BUP-XX/2022.
In addition, the letter did not mention any objection to the KPU (General Elections Commission) Decree No. 301/PL.02.7/9122/2022 dated January 30, 2022 on the Certification of the Revote Recapitulation Post-Constitutional Court Decision on June 29, 2021.
“This petition used a power of attorney dated December 16, 2021. As such, the power of attorney that has become a basis for [the counsels] to represent [Candidate Pair No. 2] at this hearing is formally flawed, resulting in formal defect of the petition for this case,” Heru said virtually.
He also asserted that the Constitutional Court (MK) did not have jurisdiction over the case because the object is the annulment of a KPU decree when the case has not received a final ruling. The Court, on point 6 in its verdict, had ordered that the revote results be reported to the Court by the Respondent. Therefore, the Court’s interlocutory injunction had been applicable and the report over the revote must be concluded by a final ruling. Thus, the object of this petition, which is based on the interlocutory injunction, did not meet the requirements.
Not Reregistered
Next, responding to the Petitioners’ allegation of rejection of additional party endorsement, Heru said that the Petitioners had not re-register. They only submitted a copy of a decree by the DPP (central executive board) of the Crescent Star Party and had failed to produce a statement of endorsement.
In addition, he added, the Crescent Star Party had revoked their endorsement on December 6, 2021, which the party confirmed. Therefore, the Respondent had not committed any violation during candidate registration process. Additionally, responding to the allegation of inappropriate reporting of the Relevant Party’s LHKPN (official wealth report), Heru said that the Respondent had carried out its authority and received the documents for regent candidates following the provisions of the election registration.
Revocation of Endorsement
At the hearing, Demianus Bayage said on behalf of Yalimo Regency Bawaslu (Elections Supervisory Body) that based on a report they received on December 6, 2021, the Crescent Star Party had revoked their endorsement for the Petitioners and instead endorsed the Relevant Party. The Respondent had issued a report on December 15, 2021, which clarified the party’s endorsement of Candidate Pair No. 1 Nahor Nekwek and John W. Willi.
As for the allegedly illegitimate appointment of PPD (district election committee), Bayage asserted that Bawaslu had supervised the process. Based on their observation throughout the second revote, 11 reports had been received. However, they had all been followed up on and the results reported to all relevant parties.
“Based on Bawaslu’s supervision, it can be reported that the revote had run safely and orderly. This second revote did not see any transfer of votes because there had been no reports from the lower levels. The C-result forms and the D-result forms had all been signed by the witnesses,” Bayage said at the hearing, where he was accompanied by another Bawaslu member Ronald M. Manoach.
Past Threshold
Meanwhile, the Relevant Party’s (Candidate Pair No. 1 Nahor Nekwek and John W. Willi) legal counsel Petrus P. Ell asserted that the Petitioners did not have legal standing in the case because the Candidate Pair No. had received 48,504 votes while they received 41,548 votes. This put the margin between the two at 7.8%, well over the 2% threshold for the Yalimo Regency election.
Also read: Lakius Peyon-Nahum Mabel Challenge Yalimo Regency Revote
The Petitioners alleged that there had been violations in the 2020 Yalimo Regency election revote on January 26, 2022. They believe that since the beginning, the revote had not followed the Constitutional Court’s mandate referred to in Decision No. 145/PHP.BUP-XIX/2021. This, the Petitioners asserted, would have constituted a violation of the KPK (Corruption Eradication Commission) Regulation No. 2 of 2020 on the Amendment to the KPK Regulation No. 7 of 2017 on the Deadline of LHKPN (official wealth reports). The Petitioners viewed the inappropriate wealth reporting as a deliberate attempt to conceal wealth.
They had also found that Candidate Pair No. 1 and the Respondent had committed violations. One of them was the non-transparent replacement and appointment of PPD (district election committee) in 5 districts in Yalimo Regency, as only certain people were selected as PPD officers. As a result, electoral frauds occurred during the revote as oddities and data manipulation there were carried out by the Respondent in several areas. This includes the number of DPT (final voters list), which should be 90,948 votes—48,504 votes for Candidate Pair No. 1, 41,548 votes for Candidate Pair No. 2, and 896 invalid votes. Meanwhile, the Petitioners observed there had been fraud in Ohoniam, Ohobam, and Bulmu in Elelim District and several other villages did not participate in the revote. They also found that votes were sabotaged in 14 villages in Apalapsili District by KPPS (polling station working committee) officers and the campaign team of Candidate Pair No. 1 by voting and filling in the C-Hologram result forms. In addition, Waeo added, fraud also occurred in Abenaho District. All these manipulative practices had taken away 6,956 votes from the Petitioners.
For the alleged TSM (structured, systematic, and massive) violations by the Respondent and Candidate Pair No. 1, the Petitioners requested in their petitum that the Court annul the KPU Decree No. 301/PL.02.7/9122/2022 dated January 30, 2022 on the Certification of the Revote Recapitulation Post-Constitutional Court Decision on June 29, 2021. They also requested that the Court disqualify Candidate Pair No. 1 Nahor Nekwek for not meeting the requirement of party nomination. In addition, they requested that the Court declare the Certification of the Revote Recapitulation Post-Constitutional Court Decision No. 145/PHP.BUP-XIX/2021 regarding the 2020 Yalimo regent-vice regent election means that Candidate Pair No. 1 Nahor Nekwek and John W. Willi received 41,548 votes while Candidate Pair No. 2 Lakius Peyon and Nahum Mabel received 48,504 votes.
Writer : Sri Pujianti
Editor : Lulu Anjarsari P
PR : Fitri Yuliana
Translator : Yuniar Widiastuti (NL)
Translation uploaded on 2/17/2022 22:46 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.
Thursday, February 17, 2022 | 17:04 WIB 244