Will the MK Grant the Military a Term Extension?
The Government told the justices of the Constitutional Court (MK) that the academic draft on the revision of the Indonesian Military (TNI) Law No. 34/2004 the House of Representatives (DPR) had made a few years ago has a substance similar with the judicial review (JR) requesting the extension of the military officers’ retirement age. Given the Government’s statement, will the Court grant the said JR request?
Latest Military Job Rotation
The Military Commander (Panglima TNI) General Andika Perkasa made another round of military job rotation. The rotation affected 100 high-ranking officers, including one territorial commander. Also from this rotation, it’s worth highlighting the generals that were tasked to outside of the military’s structure. One of them is Andika’s former classmate, who has been assigned to the state oil and gas company PT Pertamina (Persero).
Ganjar’s Potential in a Two-Horse Race
The polling agency Saiful Mujani Research and Consulting (SMRC) found the Governor of Central Java Ganjar Pranowo, a politician from the ruling party PDIP, leading the poll with a significant margin above Prabowo Subianto and Anies Baswedan. The SMRC also found Ganjar winning the presidential race conveniently in a head-to-head against either Prabowo or Anies.
Another Strong Message from PDIP
The ruling party PDIP sent another strong message. The Party rejects any attempt to postpone the 2024 elections. The PDIP also said that President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, who is the Party’s cadre, would not agree with the postponement of the elections and a term extension.
The Court Upholds the Presidential Threshold, But …
The Constitutional Court (MK) once again rejected six judicial review (JR) requests that attempted to challenge the presidential threshold set in the Election Law No. 7/2017. Surprisingly, four justices gave a dissenting opinion. Two of whom agreed with the plaintiffs that the threshold was unconstitutional and so should be eliminated.
2024: A Two-Horse Race or More?
Five pairs of presidential and vice presidential candidates participated in the 2004 presidential election, the first ever direct presidential election in the history of the country. A decade later, only two pairs of candidates competed against each other in the 2014 presidential election. How about the 2024 presidential race? Will we see two pairs or more in 2024?
Taxing Transactions through Electronic Systems (11)
The Ministry of Finance continues expanding the tax base by appointing new collectors of Value Added Tax (VAT/PPN) for digital products in trading through the electronic system (PMSE). The number of collectors continues to increase. The Ministry recently appointed four new collectors, and by January 2022, there are already 98 companies with the same set of responsibilities. Nearly two years after the policy was implemented, the Government has received deposits from 74 collectors, with more than Rp5 trillion tax value.
The Latest Electability Survey
The Research & Development Department (Litbang) of Kompas, the largest newspaper in Indonesia, released the results of its electability survey about potential presidential candidates for the 2024 race. The Litbang Kompas found Prabowo Subianto, Ganjar Pranowo, and Anies Baswedan at the top three but Prabowo leading the poll with a significant margin.
Paloh’s Nasdem Party & 2024 Race
Media mogul Surya Paloh, in his capacity as the chairman of Nasdem Party, stated that his party was considering three figures to become a presidential candidate for the 2024 race. Paloh also stated that Nasdem might cancel its plan to hold a presidential convention. Paloh’s statement is worth highlighting considering he has a potential to become one of the kingmakers in 2024 and given Nasdem is now the fourth largest political party in the House of Representatives (DPR).
The New Capital City Chief Talks
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo gave another clue about the chief of the new capital city authority. The President said that the chief will be a figure from outside of a political party and that, perhaps, the figure will be appointed next week. With the said clue, one wonders whether or not the then Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama a.k.a Ahok, who is now a politician from the ruling party PDIP, is out of the race.