In this country, only a Constitutional Court judge is called a statesperson. This means other state officials may not be so.
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Kompas/WISNU WIDIANTORO
Chairman of the Constitutional Court Arief Hidayat (center) leads a panel of judges in the decision-making session related to the test of rebellion articles in the Criminal Code at the Constitutional Court in Jakarta on Wednesday (31/1).
In this country, only a Constitutional Court judge is called a statesperson. This means other state officials may not be so.
Article 15 of Law No. 8/2011, which replaced Law No. 24/2003 on the Constitutional Court, stipulates that a constitutional judge must meet several requirements. They must possess integrity and a reputable personality, demonstrate fairness and have the capacity to be a statesperson with knowledge of the constitution and state affairs. There is no other law that requires a candidate for any other official state positions, including president and vice president, to have the capacities of a statesperson.
The stipulation is a realization of the mandate of the constitution. The Constitutional Court (MK) consists of nine judges selected by the president after nomination by the Supreme Court, the House of Representatives and the president. A constitutional judge must have integrity, a reputable personality, fairness and the capacity to be a statesperson with no other position in politics or the economy.
As a statesperson, a constitutional judge, regardless of who has nominated him/her, must be someone who has matured. The Indonesian language dictionary defines a statesman as someone who manages the state with wisdom and dignity. In a Javanese proverb, it is called berbudi bawa laksana, which means to display consistency in word and action while practicing good deeds and possessing wisdom.
It is not easy to find a statesperson. Moreover, the law also requires a constitutional judge to possess a doctoral or master degree in law. With a higher education degree, it is hoped the constitutional judge would be someone who has matured academically, emotionally and in terms of attitude.
It is ironic, however, that the statespersons of the Constitutional Court, which consists of nine people, have often been implicated in cases that have drawn public attention. MK chief judge Akil Mochtar was arrested in 2013 by the Corruption Eradication Commission for allegedly taking bribes. In 2017, chief constitutional judge Patrialis Akbar was also arrested. Both of them were sent to prison.
In 2011, constitutional judge Arsyad Sanusi allegedly committed an ethical violation. He let his family contact those with a case at the court. Arsyad resigned although his actions were considered to be only a minor violation of ethics. On the other hand, current chief judge Arief Hidayat on Wednesday (31/1) was reported to the court’s council of ethics. Arief was again alleged to have violated ethics. This was the fourth report against Arief. In the previous cases, Arief was declared to have committed minor ethical violations and received light penalties.
The report against Arief reminds us of a similar report against then House speaker Setya Novanto in 2015 over an alleged ethical violation related to demanding stakes in PT Freeport Indonesia. Before the House’s Council of Ethics issued its punishment, Setya resigned. As a politician, after lobbying and eventually winning the Golkar Party chairmanship, he was given the House speaker position again. Setya resigned in 2017 over allegations of his involvement in the e-ID corruption case.
An MK chief judge is not a politician so there is no need for lobbying to win a leadership position. An MK chief judge should be a statesperson.
