Zulkifli Sandagang from Bawaslu at the examination hearing for the 2024 Banggai regent election case No. 171/PHPU.BUP-XXIII/2025 to hear the Respondent, the Relevant Party, and Bawaslu, Friday (1/24/2025). Photo by MKRI/Teguh

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JAKARTA (MKRI) — The Banggai Regency Elections Commission (KPU) as the Respondent confirmed that there were voters using their diploma in exercising their rights to vote in Polling Station 01 in Boitan Village, East Luwuk District during the 2024 regent election. Nevertheless, the Respondent reported that none of the witnesses of Candidate Pair 3 Sulianti Murad-Samsul Bahri Mang (Petitioners) nor other witnesses objected.

"Regarding the voters who exercised their rights to vote using a diploma, they were newly graduated voters, Your Honors. So, they have not been issued ID cards, but now they already have ID cards. No objection, Your Honors, everybody signed," said Mahrus Ali, the Respondent's legal counsel in the examination hearing for Case No. 171/PHPU.BUP-XXIII/2025  on Friday, January 24, 2025.

Deputy Chief Justice Saldi Isra seeked clarification for the incident, "Only the diploma was shown? Is that true? Isn't Family Card allowed? In the Court Decision, there are driving license, passports, or Family Cards [that are allowed]. This is an improvisation, using a diploma," Deputy Chief Justice Saldi Isra asked in panel 2 that he chaired with Constitutional Justices Ridwan Mansyur and Arsul Sani.

In their petition, the Petitioners had alleged of the unverified and unvalidated voters in 47 polling stations in six districts of Banggai Regency, raising concern of the possibility of unlawful exercise of the right to vote. One of the incidents brought up was a case in which four voters who were listed in the final voters list (DPT) and received C-notice forms (voting invite) used their diploma to vote. However, the Petitioners did not elaborate on the incident.

On the other hand, the incumbent Candidate Pair 1 Amirudin-Furqanuddin Masulili (Relevant Party) clarified that the assignment of some authorities of the regent to the district heads had gone through review and other processes in accordance with the regulation. The Relevant Party also denied utilizing the budget allocated to subdistrict heads scheduled for 2025 in 2024, as alleged by the Petitioners.

"The budget for the year 2025 has not been utilized, the utilization of the budget of the year 2024 [was under] the Regional Regulation No. 12 of 2024 decided collectively through the Regional Development Plan. The Petitioners themselves were present in the discussion as a council member," said Muhammad Nursal, the legal counsel of the Relevant Party,

The Banggai Bawaslu revealed to have received a violation report which reported 24 district heads of the regency. The report was then registered because it met the formal and material requirements and then examined in the Integrated Law Enforcement (Gakkumdu). However, the Gakkumdu concluded that the allegation was unproven.

The Police is of the opinion that the incident did not satisfy the material requirements as election crime violations stipulated in Article 188 in conjunction with Article 71 paragraph (1) of the Law on Regional Head Election (Pilkada Law). The Prosecution, on the other hand, views that the fulfillment of the element "benefiting or harming one of the candidate pairs" must factually and directly impact the vote acquisition and must prove the party(ies) benefited or harmed. Thus, the Banggai Bawaslu declared the report to be discontinued because the incident was unproved to be election crime violations stipulated in the article above.

"[The report] was declared to not constitute an election crime violation," spoke Zulkifli Sandagang, a member of the Banggai Bawaslu.

Also read: Banggai Election Result Dispute: Regent Accused of Mobilizing Subdistrict Heads and Accelerating Budget Realization

At the preliminary hearing, the Petitioners in their petitums requested the Court to: 1) annul the Banggai Regency KPU Decree No. 722 of 2024 on the certification of the 2024 Banggai regent-vice regent election results dated December 5, 2024; 2) disqualify Candidate Pair 1 (Amiruddin-Furqanuddin Masulili) from the Banggai regent election; and 3) order the Banggai Regency KPU to conduct a revote without Candidate Pair 1. 

Author : Mimi Kartika

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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