Kurniadi Nur (middle), the Petitioners’ legal counsel at the preliminary hearing of the Bulukumba regent election results dispute on Friday (1/10/2025). Photo by MKRI/Bayu.

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JAKARTA (MKRI) — Bulukumba Regent Candidate Pair 1 Jamaluddin M. Syamsir and Tomy Satria Yulianto (Petitioners) alleged the incumbent candidate pair Andi Muchtar Ali Yusuf and Andi Edy Manaf (Andi Utta-Edy Manaf) of authority abuse at the 2024 regent election. The argument was delivered in the petition of Case No. 53/PHPU.BUP-XXIII/2025 on Friday afternoon, January 10, 2025.

Kurniadi, the Petitioners’ legal counsel argued that the incumbent as the Relevant Parties had carried out criminal election violations by leveraging the regional officials in their campaign. The violations alleged include the misappropriation of local government budget and facilities in the incumbent’s campaign activities. He added that structural officials in several government institutions of Bulukumba were suspected to be actively manipulating the government resources such as official vehicles, officers, and other facilities in strengthening their posture in the election.

He added “There was a mobilization of civil state apparatus from the district to the neighborhood/community unit level. Secondly, there was a mobilization of village officials and money politics [proven by] a sting operation. Out of 10 districts in Bulukumba Regency, we found evidence of TSM violations in eight.”

Kurniadi claimed to have reported the violations to Bawaslu, though they decided not to register them. “Thus, petitioning to the Court is our last attempt of reporting these election crimes committed by Candidate Pair 2, Your Honor.” 

In the hearing, Kurniadi revealed that TSM violations took place in eight districts. He also submitted proofs of conversation in a group chat indicating the instruction from the incumbent to the district heads to carry out actions that would benefit them in the election.

He also mentioned that after the regent election, the incumbent rotated civil state apparatus who did not vote for him. “[The violations] started with rotation and ended with rotation. This occurred in many places,” he asserted.

The Petitioners requested that the 2024 regent election be annulled and a revote be conducted, in consideration of the violations potentially disadvantages aging other candidate pairs. They also demanded the law enforcement apparatus to fully investigate the violations thus far.

 

Author : Utami Argawati

Editor : Lulu Anjarsari P.

PR : Tiara Agustina
Translator : M. Hafidh Al Mukmin / FS (RA)

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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