Chief Justice Anwar Usman, Constitutional Justice Wahiduddin Adams, and acting Secretary-General Heru Setiawan welcoming Metro TV, Wednesday (1/18/2022) at the Constitutional Court. Photo by MKRI/Ifa.

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Wednesday, January 18, 2023 | 17:13 WIB

JAKARTA (MKRI) — Chief Justice Anwar Usman and Constitutional Justice Wahiduddin Adams welcomed a number of Metro TV leaders, representatives, and crew members on Wednesday, January 18, 2023 in the delegation room of the Constitutional Court’s (MK) main building. The delegation led by medcom.id editor-in-chief Budiyanto expressed their wish to strengthen cooperation with government institutions. Metro TV and the Constitutional Court, Budiyanto said, had cooperated for more than ten years in disseminating information for the Indonesian people.

The network also wished to invite the Court to join its upcoming Ramadan program of AH 1444 along with other state institutions in Indonesia as well as mosques and their congregations.

“For the upcoming Ramadan program, a Tabligh Akbar, we are visiting institutions, looking for mosques and congregations for this Ramadan program. We hope that the Constitutional Court can participate in it,” Budiyanto said.

Ajakan dan tawaran baik ini pun disambut baik oleh Ketua MK Anwar Usman. MK menerima dengan hangat Program Ramadan yang akan diusung oleh Metro dan tayang saat Ramadan 1444 H mendatang.

Chief Justice Anwar Usman welcomed this invitation and offer. “The Court’s cooperation with the media, including Metro TV, is very important, because it then has a channel to broadcast [its activities]. For this reason, we welcome this offer and are very happy to be involved in this good program,” he said alongside Acting Secretary-General Heru Setiawan and Head of the Public Relations and National Affairs Department Fajar Laksono Suroso.

Constitutional Justices’ Independence

In a special interview, the Metro TV media crew asked Chief Justice Anwar Usman about the widely-circulated news in the community about cases related to the open-list proportional representation in the Election Law. Answering this question, the chief justice said that every citizen has the right to file a petition to the Constitutional Court, including the petitioners who are challenging the open-list proportional representation in said Law. He encouraged the litigating parties and the public to follow the upcoming proceedings, which would be held on site from the Court’s plenary courtroom.

“The Court needs to listen to statements from various parties including 11 parties who have requested to be relevant parties, from the President/Government, the KPU, and the House. Only then [the justices] will deliberate. So, hopefully all parties can follow the hearings carefully,” he added.

The chief justice was also asked about the constitutional justices’ independence in resolving strategic cases for democracy in 2024. He explicitly stated that the justices had taken an oath in the name of God Almighty, which was not merely a formality before taking office and carrying out their duties. Therefore, he said, regardless of the cases, the justice’s independence cannot be shaken by anyone or any outside interests.

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

Translation uploaded on 1/31/2023 10:47 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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