Suci Azkiya (center) as the Respondent's legal counsel at the examination hearing for the 2024 East Seram regent election case No. 209/PHPU.BUP-XXIII/2025 to hear the Respondent, the Relevant Party, and Bawaslu, Tuesday (1/21/2025). Photo by MKRI/Bayu.

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JAKARTA (MKRI) — As the Respondent, East Seram Elections Commission (KPU) denied not following up on the recommendation of Gorom Timur district elections supervisory committee (Panwascam) on revote in two polling stations. On behalf of the Respondent, legal counsel Suci Azkiya in the examination hearing for Case No. 209/PHPU.BUP-XXIII/2025 stated that the Respondent conducted a study after the recommendation had been issued.

In the hearing held on Tuesday, January 21, 2025, Suci explained that after the Respondent received a revote recommendation in Polling Station 2 of Kilkoda Village, they carried out legal review and study on KPU Regulation No. 17 of 2024 on voting and regional election vote counting. According to Article 50 paragraph (3) of the Regulation, a revote can be conducted in a polling station if there is more than one voter who exercised their vote more than once in the same polling station or a different one.

On the other hand, the recommendation issued by the Gorom Timur Panwascam only contained one voter under the name of Rusdi Rumatela who voted for more than once. However, it was not specified when Rudi voted in Polling Station 2 of Desa Kilkoda, thus needed to be corroborated with a witness testimony.

The revote recommendation could not prove the argument that there were five deceased listed in the DPT exercising their votes because their names were not specified. The actors appropriating those votes were not specified, either.

Likewise, in the case of Polling Station 1 of Lahema Village, the Respondent did not follow the recommendation of the Kesui Watubela Panwascam, either. The legal review and study conducted by the Respondent resulted that the revote could not be carried out there for lacking the elements regulated in Article 50 paragraph 3 of the KPU Regulation.

"It was not true that the Respondent failed to carry out the recommendation of the Kesui Watubela Panwascam as argued by the Petitioners. In fact, after receiving the recommendation of the Kesui Watubela Panwascam, the Respondent took a follow-up action by conducting study and drafting a legal review," Suci justified before the panel 3 presided by Constitutional Justices Arief Hidayat (panel chair), Anwar Usman, and Enny Nurbaningsih.

As the Relevant Party, Candidate Pair 1 Fachri Husni Alkatiri-Muhammad Mifta Thoha argued that the vote acquisition stated in the decree of East Seram was true and correct. Through their legal counsel M. Syahwan Arey, they refuted the arguments alleging them of structural, systematic, and massive (TSM) violations.

"All of the witnesses from the attendance, the mandate witnesses, never filed a C-incident or witness objection form, and all of them signed the C-result, C-copy, and accepted the results. Hence, the arguments of the Petitioners are the arguments that are speculative, for the reason may [the Court] dismiss it or at least render it inadmissible," Syahwan demanded.

Member of the East Seram Elections Supervisory Body (Bawaslu) Ahmad Kilwalaga stated that their institution received a finding of indications of violation in Polling Station 2 of Kilkoda Village and Polling Station 1 of Lahema Village that led to a revote recommendation. The Bawaslu then issued a supervisory report, stating that the Respondent had not given further response on the revote recommendation.

The Bawaslu then issued other notices on revote recommendation on December 3 and 4, 2024. Ahmad explained that such notices were their attempts so the East Seram KPU would provide a response. Finally, on December 16, 2024, the East Seram KPU ensured that the revote recommendation would not be adhered.

In the preliminary hearing, Regent Candidate Pair 2 Rohani Vanath-Madja Rumatiga as Petitioners argued that the Respondent had not implemented the recommendation to conduct a revote at Polling Station of 2 Kilkoda Village and Polling Station 1 of Lahema Village.

The re-voting was recommended due to the discovery that one voter in the final voters list (DPT) had voted twice, five deceased people were listed in the voter attendance list, and the remaining ballots were cast by the polling station working committee (KPPS).

Author        : Nawir Arsyad Akbar
Editor         : Tiara Agustina
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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