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Bill gives sweeping powers to president
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo is planning to expand his power through the omnibus bill on job creation, as the bill would grant him the authority to create and revoke laws simply by issuing government regulations to resolve businesspeople’s complaints
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span>President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo is planning to expand his power through the omnibus bill on job creation, as the bill would grant him the authority to create and revoke laws simply by issuing government regulations to resolve businesspeople’s complaints.
Article 170 of the draft law, a copy of which was obtained by The Jakarta Post, stipulates that the government can consult with House of Representatives leaders in devising such regulations.
The omnibus bill, submitted to the House for deliberation last week, would also give the president the authority to revoke provincial and regency/city-level bylaws, as well as gubernatorial and regency/mayoral regulations that contradict government regulations by issuing presidential regulations.
Lawmakers at the House and experts say such provisions, if approved, would weaken the House’s legislative function, as well as the influence of local administrations, and therefore strengthen the central government.
“It’s not only about the [greater] executive authority, but how it will be possible under the Constitution," the House's Legislation Body (Baleg) deputy chairman, Supratman Andi Agtas, said on Monday.
"I think there will be a long debate at the House [on the omnibus bill]. We will surely assess whether it is in accordance with the law or not," the Gerindra Party politician added.
House Deputy Speaker Azis Syamsuddin said he assumed the government had not actually intended to add such provisions into the bill. "I can't say the government is wrong. Maybe that's just a typo," said Azis, who is a member of Coordinating Economic Minister Airlangga Hartarto's Golkar Party.
Similarly, Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Mahfud MD said, "Maybe there was a typo [...] I didn't know there were such provisions in the draft, " he told the press on Monday.
Gerindra lawmaker Sodik Mudjahid of House Commission II, which oversees home affairs, said the bill had triggered a debate about whether Indonesia was on the path to becoming an authoritarian country.
"There will be a setback to democracy. The executive will become so powerful that it will become authoritarian. It's contrary to the spirit of reformasi," he said, referring to the people’s movement that marked the end of late president Soeharto's tenure.
According to the Constitution, a law can only be revoked by a regulation in lieu of law (Perppu) issued by the president with the House's approval.
In a 2017 ruling, the Constitutional Court prohibited the central government from revoking bylaws and handed that authority to the Supreme Court.
“With those articles [in the omnibus bill], it's clear that the government wants to return the central power to the executive, led by the president," Fajri Nursyamsi from the Center of Law and Policy Study (PSHK) told the Post.
The omnibus bill would also remove a provision in the prevailing law that enables regional administrations to appeal such revocations of bylaws.
Regional administrations that continue to enforce revoked bylaws face administrative sanctions and fines.
The bill also shifts the authority to issue building permits from local administrations to the central government.
Fajri said the centralization of authority would always lead to an authoritarian government, an issue that was the target of the 1998 reform movement.
"When policies are carried out centrally and authoritatively, it poses a threat to public participation and thereby jeopardizes the implementation of democratic principles in Indonesia."
Fajri said there was a way for the government to resolve issues of overlapping legal authority without resorting to authoritarianism.
"The government can simply submit a judicial review request on bylaws with the Supreme Court and let the court do the job."
The Office of the Coordinating Economic Minister denied that the bill had an "authoritarian bent", stating that it still "respects the House’s lawmaking function".
However, it did not deny the inclusion of such provisions in the draft.
"We still uphold [democratic principles] because the government regulations will be devised after we consult with the House," the secretary to the Office of the Coordinating Economic Minister, Susiwijono Moegiarso, said in a written statement to the Post.
Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (ICJR) researcher Erasmus Napitupulu said excessive government authority would endanger the public, as it could be used to curtail human rights or persecute people.
"Imagine if all can be done [by the president] without having to go through a deliberation process at the House. The president would be like a king [...].
"The farmers, workers, students who hold protests that affect the investment climate could be prosecuted and subject to legal procedures," he said.
