F

or months, the General Elections Commission (KPU) has been fighting a losing battle in challenging the House of Representatives’ decisions during the deliberation of a series of KPU regulations for the upcoming regional elections.

Under the Regional Elections Law, enacted on June 2, the KPU is required to consult the House and the government before issuing election regulations or suspension of debt payment obligations (PKPU).

The KPU has argued against the policy, claiming that the policy compromises its independence.

Now that the deliberation for all PKPUs within House Commission II, overseeing home affairs, have been completed, the KPU is seeking to regain its independence by challenging the Regional Elections Law at the Constitutional Court.

The KPU will challenge Article 9 on the law that requires it to consult with the House and the government when drafting PKPUs. The same article also stipulates that the decisions made by the House and the government in the
hearings with the KPU are final and binding.

“We plan to file for a judicial review this week,” KPU chairman Juri Ardiantoro said.

The KPU actually planned to file the judicial review when the House passed the law but had to postpone it because it needed to immediately draft a PKPU in time for the regional elections.

The KPU said it had strong grounding to file a judicial review request against the law.

Last week, the House finished the PKPU under which convicts on probation are allowed to run in the upcoming regional elections. The KPU protested this during the hearings.

The Regional Elections Law does not allow all convicts to be the candidates in the elections. It only allows ex-convicts.

However, Commission II chairman Rambe Kamarul Zaman of the Golkar Party insisted on passing the PKPU, despite the KPU’s objection. The KPU had no choice but to accept the House’s decision.

“Since the start of deliberation, the KPU never agreed that ex-convicts should be allowed to run in the elections, but the PKPU has been passed. There is nothing we can do,” Juri said.

The Constitutional Court’s ruling does not carry retroactive principles, meaning that the ruling will not affect the PKPU for the 2017 regional elections. It can only
be applied on the revision of the PKPU for the 2018 regional elections.

Meanwhile, Rambe said that it was the KPU’s right to file for judicial review, but he expected it would not do so as it could negatively affect the regional elections.

“It’s inappropriate for the KPU to challenge the law because they are an executive body,” Rambe said.

He added that the article was in line with the Legislative Institutions (MD3) Law, which stipulates that all House hearing results are binding.