Legal Counsel representing the related parties in the ruling hearing of Case Number 326/PHPU.WAKO-XXIII/2025 concerning the Palopo mayoral election result dispute, held in the Plenary courtroom on Tuesday (8/7/2025). Photo by MKRI/Teguh..

---

JAKARTA, MKRI — The Constitutional Court (MKRI) has declared the petition filed in the case of the Palopo Mayoral Election Dispute, Case Number 326/PHPU.WAKO-XXIII/2025, inadmissible. The Court concluded that the Deputy Mayor candidate, Akhmad Syarifuddin, had fulfilled the legal obligation to publicly disclose his status as a former convict prior to the official determination of candidate pairs participating in the Re-vote for the Mayor of Palopo, as mandated by a previous court ruling.

“The errors committed by the Election Supervisory Body (Bawaslu) and the Respondent—namely, the Palopo City Election Commission (KPU) and/or the South Sulawesi Provincial Election Commission—cannot be imputed to Akhmad Syarifuddin,” stated Constitutional Justice Ridwan Mansyur during the pronouncement of the ruling on Tuesday, 8 July 2025, at the Plenary Courtroom of the Constitutional Court in Jakarta. “Furthermore, Akhmad Syarifuddin took the initiative to announce his status as a former convict through the Palopo Pos daily newspaper on 7 March 2025, which was prior to the finalization of candidate pairs the revote on 23 March 2025.”

Justice Ridwan elaborated that the Court had obtained sufficient legal evidence demonstrating that Akhmad Syarifuddin had made the required public disclosure ahead of both the Respondent’s determination of candidate pairs and the issuance of any findings or recommendations by the Palopo City Bawaslu. This was supported by a letter dated 8 March 2025 from the Director of the Palopo Pos daily, confirming the publication of Akhmad Syarifuddin’s announcement in the 7 March 2025 edition.

Following his initial disclosure in the Palopo Pos daily newspaper, Akhmad Syarifuddin reiterated the announcement on 9 April 2025 in the same publication and further disseminated the information via his personal Instagram account on 10 April 2025. These public disclosures were made well before the commencement of the campaign period, thereby giving voters ample time to consider the information.

The Court highlighted that this obligation to declare one’s status as a former convict is not a mere formality, but a critical measure to equip the electorate with complete information about a candidate’s background. It allows voters to make an informed decision when exercising their constitutional right to vote.

The Court views the steps taken by both the Respondent and Akhmad Syarifuddin as consistent with the intent of the regulation, which is to ensure transparency and public awareness," stated the Panel of Justices. Furthermore, the Court underscored that the initial announcement was made even before the official determination of candidate pairs for the Re-vote, reinforcing the sufficiency and good faith of the disclosure.

The Constitutional Court found that Akhmad Syarifuddin had acted in good faith by openly declaring his status as a former convict when applying for a Police Clearance Certificate to the Palopo Police. In the application form, Syarifuddin stated that he had been convicted of an election-related crime. The Police Clearance Certificate issued by the Palopo Police also explicitly cited the relevant provisions of Law Number 10 of 2016 on Regional Head Elections, which served as the legal basis for his conviction.

Justice Ridwan emphasized that the Court could not validate the recommendation issued by Bawaslu, as it did not clearly instruct the Respondent on what actions to take. Likewise, the Court could not confirm the appropriateness of the Respondent’s interpretation in fulfilling candidate requirements based on that recommendation. Nonetheless, the Court stated that any procedural errors made by Bawaslu and the Respondent should not be attributed to Akhmad Syarifuddin.

The Court further noted that Akhmad Syarifuddin had voluntarily disclosed his status as a former convict in the Palopo Pos daily newspaper on March 7, 2025—prior to the official determination of the candidate pair for the revote on March 23, 2025. According to the Court, this action constituted a form of corrective measure deemed sufficient to satisfy the requirement for a former convict to inform the public.

In addition to this voluntary action, the Court recognized that Syarifuddin also complied with the corrective instructions issued by the Respondent prior to the start of the campaign period. These measures were considered adequate in fulfilling the intent behind the requirement for former convicts to inform voters so they could make informed decisions on whether or not to support the candidate pair in which Syarifuddin ran as deputy mayor.

Even when considering the timeline—from the voluntary announcement on March 7 to the official public notice based on the Respondent’s instruction on April 9–10, 2025—the Court concluded that there was sufficient time for the public to assess Akhmad Syarifuddin’s candidacy. Therefore, the Petitioner's claim that Syarifuddin failed to fulfill the legal requirement to disclose his former convict status was deemed legally groundless.

The Court also addressed issues regarding the eligibility of the mayoral candidate, Naili, who ran alongside Syarifuddin. It found that Naili met the requirements stipulated in Article 7(2)(m) of the Regional Head Law, having a valid Taxpayer Identification Number (NPWP) and submitting personal tax returns for at least the past five years. The Court considered irrelevant the Petitioner’s argument about the late submission of a tax return receipt, since Naili had already fulfilled the core eligibility requirements.

“In this regard, the Court finds the argument irrelevant because the mayoral candidate Naili has met the requirements under Article 7(2)(m) of Law Number 10 of 2016, as he possesses an NPWP and has submitted tax returns for the last five years,” said Justice Ridwan.

Ultimately, the Court ruled that the Petitioners, Candidate Pair Number 2, Farid Kasim and Nurhaenih, lacked legal standing to file the petition, as the case failed to meet the vote margin threshold required under Article 158(2)(a) of the Pilkada Law to establish standing.

As previously reported, Akhmad Syarifuddin ran for Deputy Mayor of Palopo alongside Trisal Tahir as Candidate Pair Number 4 and secured the highest number of votes in the 2024 Palopo Mayoral Election. However, their victory was contested by Candidate Pair Number 2, Farid Kasim and Nurhaenih, who filed a dispute petition (PHPU) with the Constitutional Court. As a result of the proceedings, Trisal Tahir was disqualified for failing to meet the eligibility requirement of holding a high school diploma.

Author  : Mimi Kartika

Editor   : Lulu Anjarsari P.

PR : Fauzan Febriyan

Translator     : Fuad Subhan

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.

---