The Statesman’s Conscience

KOMPAS/RADITYA HELABUMI

I Dewa Gede Palguna (right) and Aswanto (left).

The Constitution stipulates special requirement for constitutional justices, namely that they must be statesmen or stateswomen. It is never easy to define statesmanship, and each state body that proposes constitutional justices has its own indicators.

However, once in a while, we find people that personify the ideals of statesmanship. On Monday (25/3/2019), Constitutional Court (MK) justice I Dewa Gede Palguna withdrew his candidacy from the election of the MK deputy chief justice for the period of 2019-2021. The move left as the sole candidate the newly reelected MK justice Aswanto.

Palguna’s decision to withdraw his candidacy was touching, because withdrawal seems to be too subtle a concept in the banal world of politics and power. Everyone seems to want to run for office, so when the word “withdraw” is uttered all of a sudden amid a heated electoral battle, people are shocked. They gasped. Then, melancholia sets in and everyone becomes speechless. No words are needed.

The public Justice Assembly Meeting (RPH) was held on Monday morning, with the election of MK deputy chief justice as the sole point on the agenda, after no consensus had been reached in the two previous closed RPHs on Friday last week and earlier on Monday. In line with MK Regulation No. 3/2012 on the election of MK chief justices and deputy chief justices, in the event of no consensus, voting is done in a public RPH.

Aswanto and Palguna were the two candidates who emerged from the closed RPH. Aswanto served as deputy chief justice before his first term ended on March 21, and he was required to undergo a re-selection process to serve a second term.

The vote for a deputy chief justice, involving nine constitutional justices, was expected to be an easy one. The constitutional justices are known for their closeness to one another, and competition for who would become the deputy chief justice should not change that.

After the meeting’s rules of order were read out, MK chief justice Anwar Usman gave each MK justice time to make their decision in the voting booth. Aswanto was given code number 1 and Palguna number 2. The justices cast their votes by circling the chosen number on the voting ballot. No circle meant abstention. Circling both names would make the vote invalid.

After all the justices had cast their votes, the tabulation began. “The Honorable I Dewa Gede Palguna. Valid!” said the tabulation officer, showing the first ballot to the audience. The second ballot also goes to Palguna. The third one, however, was: “Abstain!” The officer showed the audience the ballot without any circle.

The abstention increased tension in the room, which was visible in the justices’ faces, for one missing vote meant a 4-4 draw was possible. In the end, that is exactly what happened. The final tally showed: four votes each for Aswanto and Palguna.

Revote

In line with MK regulations, a revote was held. The second vote yielded the same result as the first one, as the abstaining vote was replaced with an invalid one. Had one of the judges changed their mind, the result might have changed. However, the two justices again got four votes each, as the one ballot with both names circled was rendered invalid.

Everyone became uncomfortable. The audience grew more curious as to who may have abstained and who gave the invalid vote.

Anwar was ready to begin the second revote when Palguna asked for permission to speak. “Pak chief justice, we have so many jobs to do beside this, so hereby I withdraw my candidacy as MK deputy chief justice,” Palguna said.

The audience and justices were shocked. One by one, the justices expressed their appreciation to Palguna for his decision. Because of his withdrawal, Aswanto will automatically reassume his position of MK deputy chief justice.

“Pak I Dewa Gede Palguna has shown us all his big heart and his view that our tasks are much more important that our titles. This shows the public that these justices are statesmen that do not prioritize their own interests,” MK justice Arief Hidayat said.

The scene grew solemn and even poignant because of the justices’ appreciation for Palguna. Some MK employees had tears in their eyes. Anwar, who led the public voting process, was also tearful. Palguna only has 10 months left in his current term. However, in the RPH on Monday, he left a legacy that will live on long after he leaves the MK.

Palguna said he did not want the voting for MK deputy chief justice to be a prolonged drama. He decided to withdraw his candidacy because of his conscience. He said the decision was purely because of his conscience.