Discussed without meaningful public participation, the DKJ Bill is vulnerable to being challenged by the Constitutional Court

Taking a cue from the public's lawsuit against the Job Creation Law to the Constitutional Court, the procedure for discussing bills can also be taken into consideration, not only in filing lawsuits, but also in deciding on them.

Also read: Conditionally Unconstitutional Job Creation Law

The lawsuit is based, among other things, on the discussion of the Job Creation Bill which did not involve meaningful public participation. In late 2021, the Constitutional Court declared the Job Creation Law conditionally unconstitutional.

"Issues related to meaningful participation that are ignored by the DPR could be a strong reason for anyone to challenge the DKJ Law to the MK," said Lucius when contacted from Jakarta, Friday (29/3/2024) .

According to him, the DPR and the government cannot reason that they have absorbed public aspirations during the process of formulating the draft RUU DKJ and then claimed it was a form of meaningful public participation. This is because the draft bill is initial material that is very likely to change during the discussion process. "(Therefore), public participation is actually needed most in the discussion process rather than during draft preparation," said Lucius.

The issue of meaningful participation that is ignored by the Parliament can be a strong reason for anyone to challenge the DKJ Law in the Constitutional Court.

Without meaningful participation from the public, Lucius said, law makers cannot avoid suspicions that there are attempts to pass certain clauses that have the potential to be rejected by the public. For example, regarding the formation of the Agglomeration Council whose leadership is chosen by the president. This indicates the intention to make the Agglomeration Council an extension of the central government.

"Things related to the interests of elites in the Draft Criminal Code seem to be the reason why the DPR and government are rushing to discuss it," said Lucius.

Also read: DKJ Bill Passed, Capital City Relocation Await Presidential Decree

The bill on the Authority of Cultural Affairs is now being discussed by the Legislative Body (Baleg) of the Indonesian Parliament after receiving an assignment from the parliament's leadership on March 13, 2024. The Working Committee on the bill held intensive meetings to discuss the bill on March 14, 15, and 18, 2024. During these four days, the discussions only involved the parliament and the government and were never attended by representatives from relevant communities.

Previously, when met after a meeting to discuss the DKJ Bill at the Parliament Complex, Jakarta, March 18 2024, Minister of Home Affairs Tito Karnavian disagreed with the statement that the discussion process for the DKJ Bill did not involve public participation. This is because the Directorate General of Regional Autonomy at the Ministry of Home Affairs has held several public examinations of the DKJ Bill since 2022. According to him, The DPR Legislative Assembly has also conducted public consultations with community leaders, especially from Betawi circles, when drafting the bill.

Even though the discussion process did not involve public aspirations, the DKJ Bill was approved to be passed into law at the DPR Plenary Session, Thursday (28/3/2024). During the meeting, eight of the nine political party factions in the DPR agreed to it. Only the Prosperous Justice Party faction (PKS) rejected the ratification.

Also read: Only discussed for four days, the Jakarta Special Region Bill is ready to be ratified

A member of the DPR's Baleg from the PKS faction, Anshory Siregar, stated that the discussion of the DKJ Bill was too rushed and did not involve the community. According to him, the discussion does not need to be hurried because development in the National Capital Region (IKN) is still ongoing. Original Article: Partai Persatuan Pembangunan (PPP) mengkritisi penyelenggaraan pilkada di Jawa Tengah yang dinilai tidak sejalan dengan undang-undang. Menurut mereka, pelaksanaan pilkada gagal karena tak mampu memberikan rasa aman dan jaminan keselamatan kepada para pemilih. English Translation: The United Development Party (PPP) criticized the implementation of the regional elections in Central Java, which were considered not in line with the law. According to them, the implementation of the elections failed because it was unable to provide a sense of security and safety for voters.

"This bill was discussed hastily and rushed. I once asked that we check with IKN first. I heard that the DPR building (at IKN) has not been built," said Anshory.

There are no specifics yet

Apart from the issue of procedural discussion, Anshory also emphasizes the issue of the specificity of DKJ after it is no longer the capital city. According to him, the DKJ Law has not included that specificity. However, an explanation of that specificity is needed.

He gave an example, DKJ could have a specialty as an economic center. To support it, tax exemption regulations can be made. However, such things are not yet stated in the DKJ Law.

A member of the Legislative Body of the Indonesian House of Representatives from the PKS Faction, Hermanto, has proposed that one of the considerations that can be taken is to make DKJ the legislative capital. This means that DKJ is positioned as a special city to form laws.

Also read: Triggering ASN Jealousy, DKJ Bill Says There Are 30 Institutions Not Directly Moving to IKN

According to him, DKJ is highly suitable to become the legislative capital because of its history, access, and adequate resources. With these advantages, the community will always be able to express their aspirations directly to the representatives in the Parliament Complex.

"The DPR complex in Jakarta is very effective and appropriate to become a legislative city that is specifically designated for producing laws. Thus, Jakarta still has a special label," said Hermanto.