North Maluku KPU Affirms No Special Treatment Of Cagub In Lieu Of The Late Benny Laos

Chairman of the General Election Commission (KPU) of North Maluku, Mochtar Alting, Tuesday (22/10/2024). ANTARA/Abdul Fatah (Abdul Fatah)

The General Election Commission of North Maluku Province (KPU MALUT) confirmed that there was no special treatment for the proposed candidate for governor Sherly Tjoanda to replace Benny Laos, the cagub who died in the fast boat fire incident in Taliabu.

"I want to clarify the response of certain parties, the North Maluku KPU has placed the replacement for the candidate for governor who died as a state of force majeure and there is no special treatment," said North Maluku KPU chairman Mochtar Selling in Ternate, quoted from Antara, Tuesday, October 22.

The KPU does not use the term force majeure to assess the condition of the replacement for the candidate governor number 4. However, if the force majeure situation is embedded in an event that results in the candidate who has been determined by the KPU to die, it is true.

Benny Laos, who has been appointed as a candidate for governor, paired with Sarbin Sehe in the 2024 Pilkada, experienced a fateful incident and died on October 12, 2024 at Bobong Port, Taliabu Island Regency.

"So that's what force majeure meant in that incident, once again it's not to be attached to a potential replacement. Although there is a correlation because at the same time, the replacement for the candidate who died, both of them were in the unfortunate incident and also as victims," said Mochtar.

Therefore, the actions of the North Maluku Provincial KPU only carry out the provisions of Article 54 of Law 10 of 2016 and the applicable derivative provisions, namely the normal provisions are regulated so that the KPU's obligation is to follow up on the proposal for a replacement name from the candidate that has been determined, but then dies and is very premature using the term transfer of the hospital.

"There is no diversion because the North Maluku KPU with the Chasan Boesoerie Ternate Hospital binds themselves in a limited time limit, not forever.

The KPU entered into a cooperation agreement with the hospital only during the medical examination of the four candidate pairs at that time. There is a clause of the agreement because after the Chasan Boesoerie Hospital Ternate conveyed the results of the examination to the North Maluku KPU as the first party, that's where the cooperation ended," he said.

He stated that the situation was different between proposing a replacement and the normal state of the previous nomination, which was a matter of time allocation that was no longer the same.

The process is very short to process the proposed replacement governor candidate so that the construction of norms takes into account the preparation of ballot logistics and other logistics which also takes time.

"Not only the print process, but starting from validation, print, distribution, sorting to multiplicating," he said.

For this reason, said Mochtar, everything is considered in accordance with applicable regulations, not purely variable replacement candidates who are under treatment because the KPU does not have the authority to assess a person's health condition.

The KPU only considers those who have the authority to assess a person's condition and travel according to the route through coordination with related parties, namely the health office, as mandated by the regulations.

"For that, if there are parties who think that the North Maluku Province KPU is not fair to every pair of candidates, please, we are grateful, it is the public's right to judge," he said.

"However, I need to emphasize, the KPU will never shift from our position as organizers who must act fairly for all parties and be born from the establishment of election organizers in accordance with the mandate of the law, that the KPU institution is a service and service institution for all parties without discrimination," he added.

Previously, a number of parties asked the KPU to be careful with the established health check procedures and procedures.

The North Maluku KPU is also asked to be fair and equal to all candidate pairs in all regional election stages processes, including the stages of health checks on the prospective governor candidate Sherly Tjoanda.