Another Chance to Help

KOMPAS/WAWAN H PRABOWO

Constitutional Court judge Arief Hidayat and deputy chief justice Anwar Usman, who presides over a judicial review into Law No 14/2005 on teachers and lecturers, take their leave in Jakarta on Wednesday.

Arief Hidayat was inaugurated for a second term as a constitutional justice on Tuesday. He was elected by the House of Representatives in December 2017.

Arief’s first term as a constitutional justice began on April 1, 2013. On January 14, 2015, he was elected by the Constitutional Court (MK) as the chief justice, replacing Hamdan Zoelva who chose not to seek another term. As stipulated in Article 3 of Law No. 8/2011 on MK, the terms of a chief justice and deputy chief justice are two years and six months. Arif was reelected as the chief justice on July 14, 2017.

The term of an MK chief justice ends when that person’s term as a constitutional justice ends. Despite taking an oath for his second term, Arief’s first term as a constitutional justice will end on April 1 this year. His term as the chief justice will also end on the same day. As he starts his second term, he will not automatically become the chief justice. This is in line with MK Regulation No. 3/2012 on chief justice and deputy chief justice elections.

After his oath-taking ceremony as MK chief justice at the State Palace on Tuesday, Arief signaled his readiness to extend his term as the MK’s chair. “It is up to the justices’ assembly meeting. If the other justices don’t want me [to lead the MK again] I will be ready. If they pick me, I will also be ready,” Arief said.

Perhaps he is forgetting the stipulation in Article 4 of Law No. 8/2011, which states that the “chief justice and deputy chief justice of the Constitutional Court can only be reelected for the same position for 1 (one) more term as stipulated in article 3”.

An MK justices’ assembly meeting on Wednesday concluded that Arief had served twice as MK chief justice. He was apparently relieved that he could not extend his term in light of the fact that his second term was only eight months long. He was also reappointed as a constitutional justice before his first term ended. Arief must be applauded for his stance and for not making a huge issue of of the assembly meeting’s decision.

The election for the next MK chief will be held on Monday. Arief can run as a deputy chief justice candidate because this will not be a violation of MK regulations or any other laws.

However, his journey as MK chief justice has not been smooth. He was sanctioned by the MK Ethics Council for committing several violations. Many have also called for his resignation.

After his reelection as a constitutional justice, this is Arief’s chance to help the MK improve its public image. After former MK chief justice Akil Mochtar and former constitutional justice Patrialis Akbar were arrested by the Corruption Eradication Commission in 2013 and 2017, respectively, MK’s image has been increasingly tarnished. This was exacerbated by Arief’s alleged ethical violations. He must now use his second chance to help the MK regain public trust.