The decision of the Bawaslu to annul several decisions of the KPU will be used in the commission’s internal evaluation, especially in evaluating the performance of its regional offices.
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JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The decision of the Elections Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) to annul several decisions of the General Election Commission (KPU) will be used in the commission’s internal evaluation, especially in evaluating the performance of its regional offices. In addition to strengthening the coordination between the central and regional KPUs, the evaluation of the political party registration process for the 2019 general election will be used as a basis for recruiting new regional members of the KPU.
Throughout the process of registering political parties contesting the 2019 general elections, including the verification stage, the Bawaslu ordered the KPU to correct its decision on three separate occasions: in registering nine political parties for the general election, in ruling the Working Party and the Garuda Party as eligible to contest, and in ruling the Crescent Star Party (PBB) ineligible for not fulfilling election requirements.
With regard to the 2018 simultaneous regional elections, Bawaslu North Sumatra ruled in favor of the province’s JR Saragih-Ance Selian gubernatorial candidate pair, who the North Sumatra KPU had declared ineligible for contesting the regional election.
Veri Junaidi, the chairman of judiciary watchdog KoDe Inisiatif, said that the agency’s decisions were not about whether the KPU won or lost the dispute. The decisions could be used as an evaluation tool for the KPU to improve its administrative and supervisory processes to the lowest level of the commission. "The central KPU can be deemed observant enough, but the processes [at the lower levels] may involve conflicts of interest," Veri said.
This year, the KPU plans to recruit new members at its provincial, district and municipal levels across 300 regions. In connection with this, KPU member Hasyim Asy\'ari said that the results of the evaluation into the political party registration and verification processes for the 2019 general election would be used in the recruitment of the KPU’s new regional members.
"The capability in [internal] communication will be important for implementing institutional policy. If something is not understood, it should be consulted on," Hasyim said. He added that the candidates’ professionalism and competence would be looked at closely during the selection process.
The recruitment of regional KPU members was important, as it would contribute to the quality of both the regional and general elections. The chairman of the House of Representatives Commission II overseeing domestic governance, Zainudin Amali from the Golkar faction, observed that the KPU’s regional ranks had repeatedly made mistakes.
House Commission II member Yandri Susanto of the National Mandate Party faction urged the KPU to supervise its regional branches more closely. "Data from the regional KPUs must be truly measurable and accountable," he said.
Nasdem Party secretary-general Johnny G Plate said repeated mistakes would diminish public confidence and the confidence of electoral participants in the KPU.
Separately, the political science department head at Surabaya’s Airlangga University, Kris Nugroho, called on the institutions tasked with organizing the elections to be objective, non-partisan and not hasty in their decision-making. "If administrative malpractice occurs, the integrity of the general election organizers could become an issue,” Kris said.
Legal efforts
In relation to the Bawaslu decision on the PBB’s eligibility, while the General Elections Law allows the KPU to file a dispute with the State Administrative Court (PTUN), Supreme Court Regulation No. 5/2017 on the Procedure for General Elections Dispute Settlements at the PTUN does not provide legal space for the KPU. The head of the Supreme Court’s Legal and Public Relations Bureau, Abdullah, said the Supreme Court regulation mentioned political parties, legislative candidates and general election participants as plaintiffs, while the KPU was always the defendant.
"The provision states that the plaintiffs should be political parties or general election candidates, because the cause of election disputes are the decisions the KPU made. However, if the KPU wants to file a lawsuit with the Supreme Court through the PTUN, they can go ahead," he said.
Meanwhile, the Bawaslu made a decision on Monday to reject similar requests filed by the Voice of Indonesian People’s Party (Parsindo), the People\'s Party and the Peaceful and Benign Islam (Idaman) Party. The Bawaslu was also scheduled on Tuesday (6/3) to decide on a similar lawsuit filed by the Indonesian Justice and Unity Party (PKPI).