JAKARTA - The Ministry of Law (Kemenkum) has officially taken a strategic step by shifting the verification system for citizenship services from an administrative approach to a risk-based one.
This transformation is carried out to strengthen the sovereignty of the state while ensuring that every determination of the legal status of citizens is more accountable and selective in accordance with the mandate of Law Number 12 of 2006.
The Director General of General Legal Administration (AHU) of the Ministry of Law and Human Rights, Widodo, emphasized that citizenship is not merely a matter of paperwork on paper, but a bond of loyalty that is very fundamental between individuals and the state.
"Citizenship is a very fundamental legal bond and loyalty so that every decision to grant or revoke it must be based on high prudence," said Widodo, quoted from ANTARA, Wednesday, April 29, 2026.
Based on data for the 2024-2026 service, a fairly high number of applications were recorded, ranging from 712 applications for dual citizens (ABG) who chose to become Indonesian citizens, to hundreds of applications through the general citizenship and marriage channels.
Responding to the complexity of the data, Widodo instructed his staff to abandon the sectoral way of working and begin to build integrated inter-agency synergies.
According to him, the verification process must be based on valid data and take into account the national interest as a whole so as not to trigger disputes later.
Widodo reminded that errors in the verification process can have serious consequences, not only for the protection of individual rights, but also for the legal certainty of the state.
This is crucial especially when dealing with sensitive cases such as the use of foreign passports or taking the oath of allegiance to another country.
"The verification process cannot be done on its own, but must be based on inter-agency synergy that complements each other in an integrated framework," he said.
The Director General of AHU emphasized that data integration and the use of international information are now a must to maintain the integrity of services.
He reminded all levels that the dignity of the country was at stake in every citizenship file they processed.
The status of Indonesian citizens, Widodo emphasized, is an identity that reflects the sovereignty and honor of the nation that must be maintained with the principle of selectivity and integrity.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
