Unproven: Court Rejects Peniel Waker-Saulinus Murib's Petition on Puncak Election Results

The Petitioners’ legal counsel at the ruling hearing for Case No. 283/PHPU.BUP-XXIII/2025 on the Puncak regent election results dispute, Monday (2/24/2025). Photo by MKRI/Bayu.

JAKARTA (MKRI) – The Constitutional Court (MK) rejected in its entirety a petition for Case No. 283/PHPU.BUP-XXIII/2025 on the Puncak regent election results dispute filed by Candidate Pair 04 Peniel Waker and Saulinus Murib.

"On the petition’s subject matter, [the Court] rejects the Petitioners’ petition in its entirety," Chief Justice Suhartoyo read the decision in the plenary courtroom on Monday, February 24, 2025.

In its legal considerations, delivered by Constitutional Justice Arief Hidayat, the Court stated that the vote acquisition results in the Puncak regent election was certified through a tiered recapitulation process, from the polling station level to the regency level. This process is documented in the C-result, D-result district, and D-result regency model forms.

Justice Arief further explained that the official documents for recording valid vote recapitulation at each level are as follows: C-result KWK model forms for the polling station level, D-results district model forms for the district level, and D-results regency model forms for the district level.

“The Sirekap (recapitulation information system) application, presented by the Petitioners as evidence, is a tool to assist in vote recapitulation and provide the public with initial information on vote acquisition. If the data in Sirekap differs from the C-result model form, it will be corrected to match the form," stated Justice Arief.

Justice Arief added that, in this case, the Court would rely on the C-results D-results model forms submitted by the Respondent and the Relevant Party to determine the correct vote acquisition at each stage for each candidate pair in Ilaga District.

"After the Court tallied the votes from all polling stations in nine villages of Ilaga District based on the C-results model form, the results showed that Candidate Pair 01 received 2,081 votes, Candidate Pair 02 secured 50 votes, Candidate Pair 03 obtained 50 votes, and Candidate Pair 04 received 8,684 votes. These results are consistent with the D-results district model form submitted by the Respondent and the Relevant Party, and also align with the D-results regency model form provided by the Petitioners, Respondent, and Relevant Party,” he explained.

Allegation of Witness Signature Forgery Not Proven

The Court also addressed the allegation of forgery on the signature of Benus Murib, the witness for Candidate Pair 04, in the D-results district form submitted by the Respondent and Relevant Party. Justice Arief explained that during the hearing on February 13, 2025, the Court requested Benus Murib to provide a sample of his signature at the hearing. After comparing, the Court determined that the signature in the form was authentic and indeed belonged to Benus Murib.

"Regarding the alleged forgery of the signature of Benus Murib, the witness for Candidate Pair 04, in the D-results district form submitted by the Respondent and the Relevant Party, the hearing held on February 13, 2025 established key facts. At the hearing, Benus Murib was asked to provide a sample of his signature on white paper, witnessed by the parties and the Puncak Regency Bawaslu (Election Supervisory Body). After examining and comparing the sample with the signature on the D-results form, the Court is convinced that the signature submitted as evidence by the Respondent and the Relevant Party is indeed that of witness Benus Murib," stated Justice Arief.

Video Recording Submitted Cannot Be Used as Evidence

The Court also determined that the video submitted by the Petitioners as evidence of the support agreement from the Ilaga District Great Elder could not serve as a legal basis. Based on the testimony of journalist Roni Wonda, the video was recorded after the voting and vote counting had concluded at the polling station level. Furthermore, the video lacks clear information regarding the identity of the person who recorded it and those involved in the recording, rendering it inadmissible as a legal fact.

Justice Arief also addressed the claim regarding the support from the Ilaga District Great Elder, which allegedly granted 10,865 votes to the Petitioners, as evidenced by a video. Based on the testimony of the Relevant Party’s witness Roni Wonda, who was a reporter at the time the recording was made, the video was taken around 02:00 PM WIT, after the voting and vote counting at the polling station level. Furthermore, the witness did not see any written evidence supporting the Petitioners’ claim regarding the vote acquisition.

"Regarding other video recordings, including a declaration of support for votes using the ikat/noken* system by the Ilaga Tribal Elder, a video of testimony from the head of the Ilaga PPD (district election committee), and a video of testimony from the Head of Ilaga district committee, the Court carefully examined the evidence. It was found that these recordings lacked a clear narrative that could fully illustrate the actual events, making it impossible to determine their substance. Additionally, there was no information about who recorded the videos or the identities of those featured in them. As a result, the videos fail to clearly depict, let alone prove, any event that could serve as a legal fact relevant to the Petitioners’ argument," added Justice Arief.

Unconvincing Statement Letter

The Court also rejected the statement letter submitted by the Petitioners on the agreement of Indigenous Peoples on the implementation of the noken/ikat system. The Court determined that the letter was created after the voting, rendering it invalid as evidence.

Based on its legal considerations, the Court rejected the Petitioners’ argument alleging a reduction of 2,181 votes and an increase of 2,081 votes for Candidate Pair 01 in Ilaga District. The Court also rejected the argument regarding discrepancies in the Petitioners’ vote count between the D-results district model form and the D-results regency model form in Erelmakawia District, as the Petitioners’ evidence was derived from the Sirekap document, which is not recognized as an official record.

News

Unproven: Court Rejects Peniel Waker-Saulinus Murib's Petition on Puncak Election Results