Muhammad Suhardi, the Petitioners’ legal counsel, at the preliminary hearing of the Taliabu Island regent election results dispute, Tuesday (1/14/2025). Photo by MKRI/Ifa.

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JAKARTA (MKRI) — The nomination process of Taliabu Island Regent Candidate 1 Sashabila Widya L. Mus is believed to be formally flawed, as she was declared bankrupt by Central Jakarta Commercial Court. According to the Regent Candidate Pair 3 Abidin Jaaba and Dedy Mirzan (Petitioners) in the Taliabu Island regent election results dispute, Sashabila could not meet the formal requirements to be a regent candidate in the first place. The hearing for Case No. 221/PHPU.BUP-XXIII/2025 on Tuesday, January 14, 2025 was presided over by Chief Justice Suhartoyo (panel chair) and Constitutional Justices Daniel Yusmic P. Foekh and M. Guntur Hamzah on panel 1.

“There is the Central Jakarta District Court Decision No. 2 28/Pdt.Sus-GLL/2021/PN Niaga Jkt.Ps dated January 20, 2022 in conjunction with the Supreme Court Decision on Appeal No. 17 PK/Pdt.sus-Pailit/2023 dated May 3, 2023. In spite of these legal facts, the Taliabu Island KPU insisted on naming Sashabila Widya L. Mus and La Ode Yasir regent-vice regent candidate pair in the election,” stated M. Suhardi, the Petitioners’ legal counsel, while delivering the key points of the petition.

In the case, PT Karya Guna Bangun and PT Karya Cipta Bangun had a dispute with Ahmad Hidayat Mus—Sashabila’s father—who was declared bankrupt. Sashabila was involved since one of the assets named in the case was a certificate of ownership (SHM) under her name. On that note, the Taliabu Island Bawaslu (Elections Supervisory Body) reminded that a certificate of non-bankruptcy was a he requirement. Yet, the KPU as Respondent certified Sashabila as a candidate for the regent election anyway.

Therefore, in the petition, the Petitioners requested the annulment of the Taliabu Island KPU Decree No. 188 of 2024 on the certification of the 2024 regent election results.

Currently, the certified vote acquisition is as follows: Candidate Pair 1 Sashabila Widya L. Mus and La Ode Yasir acquired 14,769 votes, Candidate Pair 2 Citra Puspasari Mus and La Utu Ahmadi 13.546 votes, and Candidate Pair 3 (Petitioners) 6,438 votes. More specifically, the Petitioners argued that the 8,331-vote gap between them and Candidate Pair 1 was due to the violations taking place at the administrative verification stage of the requirements for candidate pairs certification. Moreover, they brought up instances of Bawaslu’s inaction against violations during the election process.

Suhardi claimed that, on the basis of violations in the verification stage alone, Sashabila should have been declared ineligible to run with La Ode Yasir as Candidate Pair 1. However, this does not mean that the vote they acquired would go to Candidate Pair 2.  Since the process and result of the regent election was legally and administratively flawed, the Petitioners demanded the KPU to rerun an administrative verification for Candidate Pairs 2 and 3 to uphold the election that is dignified, direct, public, free, confidential, honest, and fair.

Therefore, the Petitioners requested that the Court order the Taliabu Island KPU to disqualify Candidate Pair 1 and to conduct a revote with the participation of Candidate Pairs 2 and 3 at no later than two months after the Court’s decision is pronounced.

The petition for case No. 221/PHPU.BUP-XXIII/2025 can be accessed here.

Author : Sri Pujianti

Editor : N. Rosi

Translator : M. Hafidh Al Mukmin/FS

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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