The Petitioners’ legal counsels conveying the petition’s subject matters at a judicial review hearing of the Regional Election Law, Tuesday (9/17/2024). Photo by MKRI/Ilham W.M.

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JAKARTA (MKRI) — Mathur Husyairi (member of the Crescent Star Party/PBB), Kholilur Rahman (chairman of the Bangkalan regional executive board of the Indonesian People’s Wave Party/Gelora), and Muhammad Ridha Azzaki (private employee) has filed a material judicial review petition of the provision on the requirements for regional head candidate nomination, i.e. Article 40 paragraphs (1), (2) (3), (4), dan (5) of Law No. 10 of 2016 on the Second Amendment to Law No. 1 of 2015 on the Stipulation of the Government Regulation in Lieu of Law No. 1 of 2014 on the Election of Governors, Regents, and Mayors into Law (Pilkada Law).

The preliminary hearing for case No. 120/PUU-XXII/2024—presided over by Deputy Chief Justice Saldi Isra (panel chair) and Constitutional Justices Enny Nurbaningsih and Arsul Sani—took place in the plenary courtroom on Tuesday, September 17, 2024. The Petitioners’ legal counsel Abdul Kholiq Zuhri stated that the article has stripped political party members of their right by making members of small parties unable to be selected in a regional head election when in fact as citizens they have equal right to be nominated as candidates for regional heads and the deputies. The state should have made it easier for citizens to exercise their right as citizens of a sovereign state as is stipulated in Article 28H paragraph (2) of the 1945 Constitution.

“The article actually makes it difficult for members of small parties to be nominated as candidates for regional heads and/or deputy regional heads because it only allows parties or coalitions of parties that have seats or votes in the regional parliament to be allowed or considered to have the right to nominate candidates for regional heads and/or deputy regional heads. Meanwhile, although small non-parliamentary parties that do not have sufficient votes and seats in parliament are not prohibited from nominating candidates for regional heads, in essence the enforcement of the a quo article is tantamount to prohibiting small parties such as PKB and Gelora Party from nominating their own best members as candidates for regional heads and deputy regional heads,” said Abdul Hakim, another legal counsel.

Therefore, the Petitioners request that the Court declare Article 40 paragraph (1) of the Pilkada Law, especially the phrase “A political party or a coalition of political parties participating in the election can nominate a candidate pair if it has fulfilled the requirements of at least 20% (twenty percent) of the accumulation of acquired valid votes in the election of the Regional Legislative Council members in the region concerned” unconstitutional so that Article 40 paragraph (1) would read: “A political party or a coalition of political parties can nominate a candidate pair if it has been verified as a political party or has been participating in the election of the Regional Legislative Council members in the region concerned.”

Justices’ Advice

Constitutional Justice Enny Nurbaningsih stated that the petition’s object has been ruled in Decisions No. 60/PUU-XXII/2024 and No. 70/PUU-XXII/2024, so it cannot be the object in the a quo petition. Constitutional Justice Asrul Sani affirmed this. He said that the article the Petitioners question has been reinterpreted in Decision No. 60/PUU-XXII/2024. “If it is continued, [the petition] must be revised completely because the article to review is that after the Court’s reinterpretation,” he asserted.

At the end of the hearing, Deputy Chief Justice Saldi Isra announced that the Petitioners would have 14 days to revise the petition and submit it by Monday, September 30, 2024 at 15:00 WIB to the Registrar’s Office. The Court will notify them of the schedule for the next hearing.

Author            : Sri Pujianti
Editor             : Lulu Anjarsari P.
PR                 : Raisa Ayuditha Marsaulina
Translator       : Yuniar Widiastuti (NL)

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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