Instead, a number of legislative factions plan to revisit the plan after the 2024 general election, even as the Assembly considers other available options, such as a “constitutional convention”.

It remains unclear whether the option of holding a convention refers to an accepted norm or tradition, or if it is adopting the example of the United States Constitutional Convention in 1787 that drafted the American constitution.

In his speech to mark the 77^th anniversary of Indonesian independence on Tuesday, MPR Speaker Bambang Soesatyo of the Golkar Party faction announced that the Assembly would seek to reinstate the PPHN without amending the Constitution.

He cited difficulty in realizing the plan due to fears that the majority pro-government legislature would seek to extend the presidential term of incumbent Joko “Jokowi” Widodo.

Earlier this year, several prominent figures from the coalition government proposed delaying the elections and extending Jokowi’s term beyond 2024, prompting pushback from government critics and civil society groups. Both changes would require amending the Constitution.

“Ideally, the [PPHN] should be regulated using an Assembly decree mandating a limited amendment of the 1945 Constitution. However, for the time being, as we have all come to understand, this idea is very difficult to realize,” Bambang told an audience of legislative, judiciary and executive officials on Tuesday.

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