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Supreme Court official fails to show up at budget hearing
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Stay firm – Supreme Court chief justice Hatta Ali speaks at a press conference at the court in Jakarta, recently.
. (Tempo/-)
T
he House of Representatives refused to listen to explanations regarding the Supreme Court’s revised budget due to the absence of the court’s authorized official in a hearing on Thursday.
In the hearing, lawmakers with House Commission III overseeing legal affairs, human rights, and security refused to discuss the budget, saying the discussion would be useless without the presence of the court’s top authority.
Supreme Court secretary Nurhadi had been expected at the hearing as he had budgeting authority in the country’s highest court.
Commission III deputy chairman Benny Kabur Harman said budgeting needed to be carried out carefully. He said Thursday’s hearing should have been attended by the court’s authorized official so budget decisions could be made.
"It is us [Commission III lawmakers] who would bear the legal consequences of making an improper decision. How can the House's commission leaders discuss the matter with a lower ranking official?" Benny said, before the court's representative left the hearing room at the House complex, Central Jakarta, on Thursday.
In a letter to Commission III leaders, court chief Justice Hatta Ali wrote that Nurhadi could not attend the hearing because he had been assigned to lead a competency test assessment team for the court's echelon II personnel candidates. Hatta also said the court’s administrative chief, Aco Nur, would represent Nurhadi at the hearing.
Responding to the letter, lawmakers voiced their opposition to the replacement of Nurhadi with a lower ranking official, who was tasked with presenting the budget.
Taufiqulhadi from the NasDem Party faction urged the House to wait for Nurhadi to attend a hearing. He said the commission would give a "special note" to the court’s secretary if he failed to show up in the next hearing.
Benny said Commission III would issue another summons for Nurhadi if he failed to attend the next hearing.
Aco was disappointed with the House's opposition to his presence as Nurhadi’s replacement. He said that before Thursday’s hearing, the commission asked the court to write a letter informing it of who would attend the hearing on behalf of Nurhadi. The commission, however, rejected Aco’s presence despite a letter from Hatta, claiming that the administrative chief did not have budgeting authority.
"I was rejected twice, I'm disappointed," Aco said after leaving the room. (ebf)
