Lawyer: KMA 130/2024 Does Not Violate the Law, the Determination of the Suspect Yaqut is Not Valid
JAKARTA - The legal team of former Minister of Religion Yaqut Cholil Qoumas confirmed that the Decision of the Minister of Religion (KMA) 130/2024 did not meet the requirements for sufficient evidence regarding the accusation of acts against the law/abuse of authority.
This affirmation was conveyed in a pretrial application for the determination of the status of the suspect carried out by the KPK.
"The investigation and determination of the APPLICANT as a suspect does not meet the requirements for sufficient evidence, both in relation to the allegation of the flow of funds from the Special Hajj Organizer to the APPLICANT and in relation to the allegation of illegal acts/abuse of authority in issuing the Decree of the Minister of Religion Number 130 of 2024 concerning the Additional Hajj Quota for the Year 1445 Hijriah/2024 Masehi ("KMA 130/2024")," read the pretrial application read at the PN Jaksel hearing, Tuesday, March 3.
The defendant, namely the KPK, made KMA 130/2024 as evidence to declare that there was an act against the law and/or abuse of authority by Yaqut, as was also conveyed by the KPK to the press.
"That the use of KMA 130/2024 as the basis for proof does not meet the requirements of sufficient evidence to conclude that there has been an act against the law and/or abuse of authority. KMA 130/2024 is positioned as an administrative decision issued by the APPLICANT as the Minister of Religion in carrying out the duties of organizing the hajj pilgrimage based on Law Number 8 of 2019 concerning the Implementation of the Hajj and Umrah, including by considering the situation in the field for the smooth and safety of the congregation, and based on the international agreement Ta'limatul Hajj which lists additional quota allocations for the Regular Zone 10.000 and the Special Zone 10.000," said Yaqut's lawyer.
As stated in the pretrial application, in accordance with the principle of presumption of just cause (praesumptio iustae causa), KMA 130/2024 must be considered valid and not against the law as long as it is still valid and has not been canceled, because it is the basis for the wheels of government not to stop (in this case the implementation of the hajj continues to run by prioritizing the smoothness and safety of the congregation).
"Because there are no 2 (two) pieces of evidence that prove that KMA 130/2024 is an act against the law and/or abuse of authority, then at the time of the determination of the suspects, the determination was narrated not based on the adequacy of the evidence required by the regulations. Therefore, the determination of the suspects issued by TERMOHON must be declared invalid and not legally binding," said the lawyer.
"Based on this, TERMOHON does not have the authority to conduct an investigation, investigation or establish a suspect in the case a quo. Therefore, the determination of the suspect against the APPLICANT should be declared invalid," continued Yaqut's lawyer.