Mahfud MD: There Are 2 Challenges To Be Faced After The 2020 Pilkada Voting

JAKARTA - The Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs (Menko Polhukam) Mahfud MD said that all parties must continue to be vigilant after the voting stage process in the 2020 Pilkada. Because, there are two challenges to be faced and one of them is regarding the spread of COVID-19.

"There are two challenges that must be faced. First, the spread of COVID, this spread will continue and must be controlled to a certain extent," Mahfud said in a press conference broadcast on BNPB's YouTube account, Wednesday, December 9.

He said, although there is no relevance between the increase in COVID-19 cases and the 2020 Pilkada, the spread of this virus must remain a concern even though the COVID-19 vaccine from the Chinese pharmaceutical company Sinovac has arrived in Indonesia in limited quantities. Because, this vaccine cannot be used immediately because there are a number of processes that must be done.

"We still have to be careful because whatever now we can use is the health protocol. If the amount obtained by the government (vaccines, ed) is limited until January, not to mention the injection training, then determining priorities and so on. It's still a long time, "he said.

"Therefore, what I saw earlier was that the average adherence to the COVID-19 protocol was above 92 percent so that it would be maintained if necessary, it should continue to be improved," added the former Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court.

The second challenge that must be faced is regarding the lawsuit on the results of the Simultaneous Regional Elections 2020. According to him, this is a challenge because the results of regional head elections usually cause conflict in the community.

"Of course it will be crowded about dissatisfaction with the results. That is certain, it is certain that certain areas will often cause physical violence," he explained.

In addition, this dissatisfaction will usually lead to a lawsuit in the Constitutional Court. So, all parties must start to anticipate, including the candidate participants.

Mahfud said, for prospective participants, it is best to immediately prepare the documents that are needed when filing a lawsuit. So, later there will be no impression if the candidate is just trying to take another route to win the 2020 Pilkada.

"To the participants who want to contest the results of this regional election, the data is prepared from now on. Because, I see, I used to be a Constitutional Court Judge, I tried no less than 398 cases of this Pilkada which, if grouped, actually sued because he was serious, he felt like he had won and did win ... ... there was cheating, etc. There was something like that.

"But there are those who are just trying, they know they have lost, who knows they can contact the judge, who knows they can win, who knows what they can get, falsifying data, outwitting, and others. Try it," he concluded.