Jakarta. The Constitutional Court declared on Monday that Gibran Rakabuming Raka is a legitimate vice-presidential candidate in response to accusations by rival candidates that the son of President Joko "Jokowi” Widodo was eligible to contest due to favoritism.

Presidential candidate Anies Baswedan petitioned the court to disqualify Gibran over claims that he had received an unfair advantage from the president and his uncle -- then Chief Justice Anwar Usman.

Anwar presided over a panel that revised the minimum age requirement of 40 for presidential and vice-presidential candidates by making exceptions for elected officials in October last year.

Gibran, 37, became eligible to contest because he is the elected mayor of Solo. He was appointed as the running mate of presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto and the duo went on to win the election by 58 percent of the vote.

Anies argued that because Anwar was later found guilty of serious ethics violations related to the ruling, Gibran’s candidacy must be annulled. Anwar was also removed from the chief justice position by the Ethics Council and ordered to recuse himself from the current trial.

However, Justice Arief Hidayat said the Ethics Council’s decision on Anwar cannot be used against Gibran.

Arief added disciplinary actions against Anwar couldn’t serve as evidence to convince the court about alleged nepotism and the abuse of presidential power regarding Gibran’s candidacy.

In addition, Arief said, the Ethics Council has no authority to repeal court rulings, meaning that the revised candidates’ age requirement remains valid.

"Consequently, the Court considers that disputing the legality of Gibran Rakabuming Raka’s candidacy is without merit as there is no evidence to convince the court about interference by the president to revise the candidate requirements," Arief said.

Arief is one of eight justices who read in turn the verdict in the presidential election dispute.

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