Government officials should be examples of obedience to democracy, laws, regulations and submission to good-governance ethics; do not go too far while making excuses that are difficult to accept.
By
Azyumardi Azra
·5 minutes read
KOMPAS/IDHA SARASWATI WAHYU SEJATI
Azyumardi Azra
That Indonesia's democracy has experienced a kind of setback or regression in recent years does not need further discussion and argument. This is the "conclusion" of many democratic-advocacy institutions and survey institutions as well as domestic and foreign observers. The regression is mainly related to the strengthening of political oligarchy, business oligarchy and government autocracy in determining steps on politics, government and legislation. In addition, it is also related to the narrowing of freedom of opinion and the marginalization of civil society.
Now, Indonesia is at the edge of a flawed democracy and restrictive democracy (illiberal democracy). Indonesia's flawed democracy has been made worse by the appointment of acting regional heads to replace governors, regents and mayors whose terms of office end. Appointments have been taking place since 12 May 2022. As of the end of July, 57 acting governors, regents and mayors have been sworn in.
The appointment of acting regional heads will continue throughout 2022, including 7 acting governors, 76 acting regents and 18 acting mayors. In 2023, 17 acting governors, 115 acting regents and 38 acting mayors will be appointed. As a result, a total of 271 (50.9 percent) regional heads elected by the people in the regional elections (pilkada) will ultimately be replaced by the acting officials. This means that more than half of the 541 regional heads, ahead of the regional elections on 27 November 2024, hold the power of the central government, displacing the people's sovereignty.
The appointment of the 57 acting regional heads has thus far not heeded the democratic principles regarding people's sovereignty, legal provisions regarding the election of public officials, as well as decency, political fatsun (civility) and public ethics. The government appoints the acting regional heads without transparency; it does not involve formal leaders, people's representatives (DPRD), civil society or regional-autonomy stakeholders. The acting officials are appointed by the Home Ministry, the Administrative and Bureaucratic Reform Ministry, the Cabinet Secretariat, as well as the State Civil Service Agency and the State Intelligence Agency.
Due to the behavior of the government that is not in accordance with democratic values and the legal order, it is not surprising that the Indonesian Ombudsman (ORI) has found several examples of maladministration in the appointment of acting regional heads. According to the ORI Final Examination Result Report (LAHP), which was released on 19 July 2022, the maladministration was in the form of procedural irregularities in the appointment of acting officials, substantive deviation with the appointment of active TNI (Indonesian Military) officials to positions that can only be occupied by civilian officials and the reluctance of the Home Ministry to provide responses and information on the appointment of the acting regional heads.
ORI asked the Home Minister to correct the maladministration within 30 days. The Home Minister was asked to immediately improve the appointment process, which had previously "gone too far" in appointing active TNI officials to positions that could only be occupied by ASN (civil servants). ORI also asked the Home Minister to prepare a proposal for the formation of a government regulation (PP) related to the process of appointing acting regional heads, scope of authority, performance evaluation and dismissal. Furthermore, the Home Minister was asked to respond by replying to letters of protest, complaints and public objections to the appointment and selection of regional-head officials.
Typically, the Home Ministry does not respond positively to LAHP ORI, which was asking the government to immediately take corrective action. Head of the Information Center at the Home Ministry, Benni Irwan, said that the ORI request was simply a suggestion, especially regarding the need for a legal umbrella in the form of a PP for the appointment of acting regional heads. "As a suggestion, it can be accepted or not. If the advice is good and correct, we will do it. If not, we will consider others referring to the rules," he said. In contrast to ORI's request, the rules for appointing the acting regional heads are decided in the form of a ministerial regulation (Permendagri), which, he said, is being petitioned for approval from the President (Kompas, 22/7/2022).
The preparation of a Permendagri -- not a PP -- extends the saga of the Home Minister's rejection of higher legal provisions. Previously, the Home Minister ignored the Constitutional Court's decision ordering the government to issue a PP on filling the regional heads. The Home Ministry argued that the Constitutional Court did not “oblige” the making of a PP. On the other hand, the constitutional judge who is also the spokesperson for the Constitutional Court, Enny Nurbaningsih, and the Secretary-General of the Constitutional Court, Fajar Laksono, emphasized that the Constitutional Court's decision is not only a recommendation, but also final and binding and that the government has to follow up on it (Kompas, 18/5/2022).
Government officials should be examples of obedience to democracy, laws, regulations and submission to good-governance ethics; do not go too far while making excuses that are difficult to accept. Only by submitting to laws, regulations and political fatsun that are acceptable to the public can democracy grow healthily and vibrantly.
AZYUMARDI AZRA, History Professor at Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University (UIN Jakarta); Member of the Cultural Commission of the Indonesian Academy of Sciences (AIPI)
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