Foreigner Wins Regional Election, Problem in Data Synergy

The alleged dual citizenship of the elected regent of Sabu Raijua regency shows that there are still problems in the synergy of population data. The Home Ministry, KPU and Bawaslu will meet today to solve the problem.

DOKUMEN KPUD SABU RAIJUA

Candidates for regent and deputy regent elected Sabu Raijua, Orient P Riwu Kaho and Thobias Uly.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS - The controversy on the dual citizenship of the elected regent of Sabu Raijua, one of regencies in East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), Orient P Riwu Kore, shows there is a problem in the synergy of the population data with data from related agencies. With rapid development in information technology, data synergy should be better.

Orient was elected as the regent of Sabu Raijua in the regional election held on 9 Dec. 2020. He is scheduled to be inaugurated in the near future. The controversy on Orient’s dual citizenship came to surface after the Election Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) in Sabu Raijua received a reply letter from the United States Embassy (US) in Jakarta on 1 Feb. 2021 confirming that Orient was a US citizen.

If all data is connected digitally, it will be easy to check someone\'s citizenship status.

A similar case happened to Arcandra Tahar in 2016. About two weeks after being appointed Energy and Mineral Resources Minister, he was found to have dual citizenship, namely Indonesia and the US. In fact, Indonesia does not recognize dual citizenship. He was then dismissed as the Energy and Mineral Resources Minister. According to the existing law, public officials, such as ministers and regional heads, must be Indonesian citizens (WNI).

Lecturer at the School of Administrative Sciences, University of Indonesia, Lisman Manurung, said in Jakarta on Wednesday (3/2/2021) that Orient’s dual citizenship indicted that there was no paradigm shift in the citizenship data collection system. In fact, the problem could be avoided if there was data synergy among related institutions, namely the Foreign Ministry, the Directorate General of Immigration, and the Home Ministry, he said.

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"If all data is connected digitally, it will be easy to check someone\'s citizenship status," he said.

Lisman said it was time for Indonesia to increase the synergy of digital-based data population to prevent similar problems from recurring. The Home Ministry also needs to periodically validate data to ensure the data is up to date.

Kompas

Screenshot of letter received by Bawaslu Sabu Raijua, East Nusa Tenggara from the US Embassy in Jakarta, relating to the citizenship status of the elected regent Orient.

Confirmed

In early and mid-September 2020, the Bawaslu office in Sabu Raijua had tried to clarify the information that Orient was a US citizen by sending a letter to the Directorate General of Immigration, the Law and Human Rights Ministry, as well as to the US Embassy in Jakarta. However, it was only on 1 Feb. 2021 that the US Embassy replied Bawaslu’s letter confirming that Orient was a US citizen.

According to the acting head of the General Elections Commission (KPU), Ilham Saputra, a copy of e-ID card (e-KTP) used by Orient to register as a candidate for regional head showed that he was an Indonesian citizen. The KPU office in Sabu Raijua had also clarified the status of Orient’s ID card to the Population and Civil Registration Office of Kupang City and stated that the ID card was issued in accordance with the laws and regulations.

Meanwhile KPU member, Evi Novida Ginting Manik, said that the documents on the proposal for the inauguration of the elected candidate had been received by the Home Ministry and were declared complete. The term of office of the current Sabu Raijua Regent will end in 17 Feb.2021.

We will immediately take steps and make a decision in accordance with the existing regulations.

Bawaslu member, Fritz Edward Siregar, said that the Home Ministry should postpone the inauguration of the regent and deputy regent of Sabu Raijua until the citizenship issue of Orient was resolved. "This case can be used as an opportunity to improve population data in Indonesia so that a problem related to dual citizenship of candidates for regional head and public officials will not appear again," he said.

Senior officials of the Home Ministry, the KPU and Bawaslu will meet on Thursday (4/2) to solve the problem related to Orient’s dual citizenship. "We will immediately take steps and make a decision in accordance with the existing regulations," said the Home Minister’s special assistant for Politics and Media, Kastorius Sinaga.

LORENZO ANUGRAH MAHARDHIKA UNTUK KOMPAS

Director General of Population and Civil Registration (Dukcapil) Zudan Arif Fakhrulloh

Indonesian citizen

The head of the Kupang City Population and Civil Registration Office, Agus Ririmase, said that Orient P Riwu Kaho was registered as an Indonesian citizen in the population data recorded at the Directorate General of Immigration. Orient holds an ID card of North Jakarta.

"On 3 August 2020, he submitted an application to move (from Jakarta) and to become a resident of Kupang City to the Population and Civil Registration office in Kupang City. I forwarded the request to the North Jakarta’s Dukcapil Office which latter approved the change in the domicile of the person concerned to Kupang City. We then printed out Orient\'s ID card. I did this not because of his close relationship with the Mayor of Kupang, Jefri Riwu Kore or anything else, but simply to fulfill the request of the person concerned, " Agus said.

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Meanwhile, the Director General of Population and Civil Registration of the Home Ministry, Zudan Arif Fakrulloh, confirmed that Orient had admitted that he held a US passport but maintained his Indonesian citizenship. Orient also held an Indonesian passport issued on 1 April, 2019, Zudan said, adding that he got the information when he called Orient on Wednesday.

"According to the information from the Law and Human Rights Ministry, his citizenship status is still being assessed to determine that the person concerned is still an Indonesian citizen or has become a foreigner," said Zudan. If Orient is proven to be a foreigner, his family card and ID card will be canceled by the Dukcapil office, he added.

Meanwhile, the deputy chairman of the ethic council of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) in NTT, Nelson Matara, said that as one of the political parties supporting Orient’s candidacy, his party was still waiting for the KPU\'s position on the matter. Whatever the KPU\'s decision, PDI-P would accept it, he added. (SYA / BOW/ KOR / REG/ PDS)

KOMPAS/KORNELIS KEWA AMA

Population and Civil Registry Office of Kupang City, where the issuance of E-KTPs for elected regent candidates Sabu Raijua, Orient P Riwu Kore, Wednesday (3/2/2021).

This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi.