Member Of The DPR Gerindra Predicts There Are 3 Alternatives To The Constitutional Court's Decision On The Age Limit For Presidential And Vice Presidential Candidates

Chief Justice Of The Constitutional Court Anwar Usman/PHOTO VIA BETWEEN

JAKARTA - The Constitutional Court (MK) will hold a verdict hearing regarding the age limit of the presidential and vice presidential candidates today. Member of Commission II of the DPR from the Gerindra faction, Supriyanto predicts that there will be three alternative decisions of the Constitutional Court if you look at the material for the judicial review lawsuit.

"First, the Constitutional Court accepts some. This means that the minimum age limit for presidential and vice presidential candidates remains at 40 years, but it is excluded for people who are experienced as regional heads, be it governors, deputy governors, regents, deputy regents, mayors, and deputy mayors," Supriyanto told reporters, Monday, October 15.

Second, the Constitutional Court granted the lawsuit to return the minimum age requirements for presidential and vice-presidential candidates to 35 years. Third, the Constitutional Court rejects as a whole. This means that the minimum age limit for presidential and vice-presidential candidates remains at 40 years.

"If in the end the Constitutional Court takes the first alternative in its decision, in my opinion, it is still very proportional and fair, in addition to maintaining the continuity of the leadership recruitment system starting from the district/city, provincial, to leadership levels at the central level," he explained.

The member of the electoral commission said that there were two main problems in Indonesia regarding elections. First, there are frequent changes in regulations, whether the legislative, presidential or regional elections. One of them is the matter of at least the age requirements of the presidential and vice-presidential candidates.

Second, there is often a conflict of interest from the legislators, namely the government and the DPR. Because, said Supriyanto, many of them are election contestants.

"The election of the president and vice president who were directly elected by the community was first held in 2004, with the condition that the minimum age of the presidential and vice presidential candidates is 40 years. Then the second direct presidential election in 2009, it is required that the minimum age of the presidential and vice-presidential candidates be lowered from 40 years to 35 years, as stipulated in Law number 42 of 2008, concerning the General Election of the President and Vice President. Then, the implementation of the third direct presidential election in 2014 is still with the condition that the minimum age of the presidential and vice presidential candidates is 35 years," he explained.

The chairman of the Gerindra Ponorogo DPC, said that the Government and the DPR designed simultaneous elections to combine the executive election, namely the presidential election combined with the legislative elections. The purpose of this simplification and efficiency of the election budget. The presidential election, the legislative election, is simultaneously aligned with the basis of Law Regulation Number 7 of 2017 concerning Elections.

"This electoral law was first used in the 2019 elections. In this new regulation, the minimum age requirements for presidential and vice presidential candidates are changed and increased from 35 years to 40 years. For the minimum age requirements for candidates for DPD members, DPR, Provincial DPRD, district/city DPRD in this law is 21 years or no change," he explained.

"If examined carefully, the legislators of the law, namely the government and the DPR, use double standards in determining the minimum age requirements for candidates.

"In the event that the presidential and vice presidential age limit is increased from 35 years to 40 years, while the minimum age limit for DPD candidates, DPR candidates, and provincial DPRDs, districts/cities will not be changed, aka still 21 years," Supriyanto added.

The East Java legislator concluded that there were several things from various existing regulations related to elections and regional elections after being studied in depth. Specifically for regent candidates, deputy regents, mayors, deputy mayors, there was a change, which initially had a minimum age limit of 30 years, down to 25 years.

According to him, the legislators of the law, namely the government and the DPR, are inconsistent in determining the minimum limit requirements.

age of candidates who will take part in the election. Although the legislators have the right to open legal policy in determining articles in the law.

"The legislators should have a vision of implementing regulations that are measurable, integral, consistent, comprehensive, not contradictory, fair, because the law will be used for all citizens of the nation. Election laws should refer to the juridical and philosophical foundation regulated in the constitution, namely the 1945 Constitution, Article 27 paragraph 1 of the 1945 Constitution and Article 28 D paragraph 3 of the 1945 Constitution," said Supriyanto.