The Supreme Court (MA) was asked to quickly decide on the judicial review of General Election Commission Regulations (PKPU) Number 10 and PKPU Number 11 of 2023. These two PKPUs regulate the exception of the 5-year cooling-off period for former corruptors so that they conflict with Constitutional Court (MK) Decision Number 56 in 2019. It is hoped that the Supreme Court's decision will be issued before the final list of candidates (DCT) for the DPR/DPD elections is determined and then followed up by the KPU through a revision of the PKPU. Clean candidacy from former corruptors is the basic right of voters as owners of democratic sovereignty, which will be used in the 2024 elections.
"If we count from the time we registered the judicial review with the Supreme Court, at the end of July the Supreme Court should have decided, so if it has been decided then it is very likely that the names that have been reported by ICW will not be that many," said Indonesian Curroption Watch researcher Kurnia Ramadhana in an online press conference entitled "Revelry of Former Corruptors in the 2024 Election: The Supreme Court Immediately Decides on the 2023 PKPU 10 and PKPU 11 Material Tests" (5/9).
ICW, Tulisdem, and two former KPK leaders, namely Saut Situmorang and Abraham Samad, have submitted their applications since June 12, 2023. Kurnia warned that the Supreme Court should immediately decide on the application for judicial review of the two PKPUs. Because the Supreme Court has an important role in correcting KPU mistakes. Moreover, the Supreme Court's decisions on PKPU 10 and 11/2023 have the potential to be a breath of fresh air in eradicating corruption.
Article 76 of Law Number 7 of 2017 concerning General Elections regulates the mechanism for testing KPU regulations. Paragraph (4) of this article clearly limits the deadline for the Supreme Court to decide on PKPU examinations that are alleged to be in conflict with the Election Law.
"The Supreme Court is very important to save the integrity of the election and to save voters' rights to be faced with candidates of quality and integrity," said Kurnia.
ICW's findings revealed that as many as 15 names of corruption convicts were listed as candidates for election at the DPR and DPD levels. 24 names of other former corruptors are advancing in the provincial and district/city DPRD legislative contestations. PKPU 10/2023 and PKPU 11/2023 are like a red carpet rolled out by the KPU to welcome their candidacies.
"PKPU 10 and PKPU 11 clearly show that the KPU has sided with former corruptors because they have opened their cards wide to run as people's representatives in February 2024," he said.
Until this writing was written, good news regarding the Supreme Court's decision regarding the judicial review of PKPU 10/2023 and PKPU 11/2023 had never surfaced. A researcher from the Association for Elections and Democracy (Perludem), Fadli Ramadhanil, admitted he was disappointed. As one of the applicants for the judicial review, Tulisdem was disappointed with the legal framework created by the KPU. On the other hand, Fadli believes that the Supreme Court, as the front guard in testing KPU regulations, does not have the sensitivity and vigilance to ensure the integrity of election implementation.
"I am not sure that the leadership of the Supreme Court or the judge who examined the case did not hear, did not follow, and did not read the debate in the public space regarding errors in KPU regulations in formulating the requirements for former convicts to become legislative candidates. "This has been discussed a lot by the public for months," said Fadli.
PKPU 10/2023 and PKPU 11/2023 regulate the nomination requirements for former corruption convicts without having to wait a 5-year cooling-off period. This requirement seems to be "bartered" only because the former convict has completed an additional sentence in the form of revocation of political rights.
KPU's Wrong Step
The new election campaign period will begin on November 8, 2023, and end on February 10, 2024. Despite this, posters and billboards for legislative candidates are like mushrooms in the rainy season, posted on almost all roads, both urban and rural. This was also done by legislative candidates who were former corruption convicts. Full of confidence, these former corruptors are free to run in the contest for legislative candidates who can be elected.
According to Fadli Ramadhanil, this happened because of two things. First, the KPU stubbornly created the wrong legal framework. Second, the Supreme Court was not aware that, in the middle of the process of holding elections, there was an urgency for regulations that needed to be decided immediately so that mistakes did not persist.
"Actually, the situation that we hoped would ensure that the integrity of the election administration from the start of the nomination process must be maintained by establishing a technical legal framework by the election organizers, but instead the situation turned out to be as bad as today," he said.
Fadli is worried that the Supreme Court will deliberately issue a decision close to the schedule for determining the DCT in November. Because of the material review regarding the requirement of 30% representation of women in each electoral district, the Supreme Court has not yet issued its decision. In fact, one of the important indicators of holding democratic elections is the existence of a framework and law enforcement that are well implemented. According to Fadli, this is not fulfilled in the process of holding the 2024 simultaneous elections.
"The legal framework is not obeyed, ignored, and even tends to be circumvented." Well, this is what we hope for; we ask and urge immediately that the Supreme Court immediately decide on this case and grant what is requested by ICW, Ludedem, and two former leaders of the Corruption Eradication Commission, Mr. Saut Situmorang and Mr. Abraham Samad," explained Fadli.
In his notes, Fadli said that regarding MK Decision 56/2019, which requires a 5-year cooling-off period for former corruption convicts, it had already been implemented in the 2020 regional elections. In fact, now the KPU is actually deviating from the MK's decision. The KPU seems to want to save political figures or certain people who have not finished their cooling-off period but want to continue contesting.
PKPU 10/2023 and PKPU 11/2023 Threaten Re-Election
Efforts continue to remind the KPU of its mistakes. One of them asked the Constitutional Court to also "remind and reprimand" the KPU regarding the candidacy of former corruption convicts in elections, which could result in their cancellation.
"Don't think that this is a problem only in the candidacy. If this continues and later reaches the process of voting, counting, recapitulating, and determining the election results, if there are people who are not happy or object to the election results, or there is a losing party or whoever, they will use this mistake as a reason to cancel the general election results. "So the KPU must start thinking there," said Fadli.
Fadli's statement is reminiscent of the 2020 Boven Digoel regent election lawsuit. Yusak Yaluwo's victory was contested because he had not completed the 5-year cooling-off period. The MK disqualified his victory and ordered re-elections at all polling stations without including Yusak Yaluwo and Yakob Weremba.
"So, we finally ask the Supreme Court to immediately decide on this and grant what is requested by the petitioners so that the provisions of this cooling-off period return to the constitutional decision that has been decided by the Constitutional Court. "This actually aims to ensure that the implementation of elections continues to have integrity in accordance with existing laws," concluded Fadli.
Remember again the purpose of the election.
Former KPU member Ida Budhiati said the role of the Supreme Court was to encourage the realization of a government free of corruption. This is in line with the ideals of holding elections.
"In Election Law Number 7 of 2017, it is explicitly stated that the aim of our elections is to realize the implementation of elections with integrity, giving birth to a clean and corruption-free government, of course," explained Ida.
Ida added that elections with integrity according to the Election Law need to be supported by redesigning the concept of electoral justice. The Supreme Court, for example, as an institution given the authority to resolve election conflicts, needs to immediately issue a decision on a PKPU judicial review application that is alleged to be in conflict with statutory regulations. This is regulated in Article 76, paragraph 4, of the Election Law. The urgency of the Supreme Court's fast work, apart from being regulated in the Election Law, is also regulated in the Judicial Power Law as an effort to provide legal certainty, justice, and expediency.
"So in my opinion, the faster the Supreme Court works, the greater the benefits, right?" We all hope that the election results will have integrity and that a government that is clean and free of corruption will emerge," he said.
So, added Ida, there is no other way for the Supreme Court except to correct the KPU regulations and implement the Supreme Court's decision within the nomination deadline. The Supreme Court is expected to understand why the Election Law specifically regulates the mechanism for the election dispute resolution process, especially with regard to disputes over PKPU regulations and Election Supervisory Body (Bawaslu) regulations, which are considered to be in conflict with higher regulations.
"Yes, the goal is nothing other than realizing elections with integrity and a government free of corruption," concluded Ida.
Ida hopes that the Supreme Court's decision will be issued soon so as to provide an opportunity for prospective election participants who have integrity in the community. Because this is a basic right of citizens to get the best candidates who represent the interests of voters as owners of sovereignty, []
NUR AZIZAH
