Petitioner at the petition revision hearing for case no. 263/PUU-XXIII/2025, the material review of Law No. 23 of 2014 on Regional Government, Wednesday (1/21/2026). Photo by MKRI/Bay.

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Pro-People NGO revised its legal standing and explained the constitutional losses it experienced due to the enactment of the regulations on the existence of the Regional Leadership Coordination Forum (Forkopimda) in the Regional Government Law.

JAKARTA (MKRI) – The Pro-People Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) submitted revised petition for judicial review of Article 26 of Law No. 23 of 2014 on Regional Government (Pemda Law) against the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia (UUD NRI 1945). This revision was submitted during the Revision Examination Hearing held by Court on Wednesday, January 21, 2026, in the Plenary Courtroom, Building 1 of the Court.

The hearing was presided over by Constitutional Justice Enny Nurbaningsih, assisted by Constitutional Justices Anwar Usman and Ridwan Mansyur. The Petitioner had previously questioned the existence of the Regional Leadership Coordination Forum (Forkopimda), as stipulated in Article 26 of the Regional Government Law, which she deemed to be in conflict with constitutional principles.

Fitri Nur Asiah Kesuma explained that several sections of the petition were revised, including the Petitioner's identity and a description of the Court's authority. Furthermore, the constitutional loss section was revised to include five requirements for constitutional loss, an affirmation of the constitutional rights affected, and a clarification of the articles being challenged.

In addition, Fitri stated that the Petitioner's constitutional rights guaranteed by Article 27 paragraph (1) of the 1945 Constitution were deemed to have been harmed by the enactment of Article 26 paragraph (3) of Law No. 23 of 2014. According to the Petitioner, as a citizen and an institution whose position is officially recognized by the state, the Pro-People NGO should have the same position before the law and government.

For this reason, in the revised petitum, the Petitioner asks the Court to declare that Article 26 paragraph (3) of the Regional Government Law is in conflict with the 1945 Constitution and has no binding legal force. Then, the Petitioner also asks the Court to declare that the Prosecutor's Office, both at the Provincial and Regency/City levels, is removed from FORKOPIMDA or removed from Article 26 paragraph 3 of the Regional Government Law and to declare that the National Police Institution, both at the Provincial and Regency/City levels, is removed from FORKOPIMDA or removed from Article 26 paragraph 3 of the Regional Government Law.

Also read:

For the People NGO Challenges the Constitutionality of Forkopimda

Previously, the Petitioner also stated that the Pro-People NGO frequently advocates for and monitors regional government policies. However, in practice, the Regional Leadership Communication Forum (Forkopimda) is often seen as a forum for determining the direction of regional strategic policies without adequate public participation mechanisms.

Furthermore, the Petitioner considers Article 26 of Law No. 23 of 2014 to be obscure  because it does not explicitly regulate the authority, function, working mechanisms, and accountability of the Regional Leadership Communication Forum (Forkopimda). This obscureness of the norm is considered to have the potential to lead to abuse of authority, including intervention by elements of the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI), the Indonesian National Police (Polri), the Prosecutor's Office, and the judiciary in civil government affairs at the regional level.

According to the Petitioner, this situation has the potential to threaten the freedom of movement and role of civil society, including Pro-People NGOs, in carrying out their social control function regarding the implementation of regional government.(*)

Case tracking: Petition No. 263/PUU-XXIII/2025 (in Indonesian)

Author           : Utami Argawati
Editor            : Lulu Anjarsari P.
PR                : Fauzan Febriyan

Translator     : Donny Yuniarto

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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