Jakarta. Chief Legal Affairs Minister Mohammad Mahfud MD has urged the police to investigate alleged leaks involving the Constitutional Court verdict on the election system in a move that may distract public attention from the real problem.

The call posted on his Twitter account came after a former Justice Ministry official published a series of tweets alleging that the court had in fact decided to order the return of the indirect voting system the country has abandoned since the 2009 legislative elections.

Under the system, voters cast their ballots without knowing the candidates and the political party will determine which candidate wins a legislature seat on a preset numerical order in proportion to the total votes the party gets.

But in 2009 the system was replaced by the “open-list proportional representation” system in which political parties put the list of selected candidates and their photographs on the ballots.

The current system is being contested again by six individuals who demand the return of the previous system. 

Former vice justice minister Denny Indrayana wrote that the Constitutional Court justices have voted to reinstate the old system 6 to 3 although a formal announcement has yet to be made.

“No matter what, a Constitutional Court Verdict must not be leaked before it’s made public. The information from Denny could set a bad precedence and amount to the leak of classified state documents. The police must investigate Denny’s so-called A1 [top] source to prevent slanderous speculations,” tweeted Mahfud, himself a former Constitutional Court chief justice.

Mahfud added that the court verdict is a highly classified document that must be strictly protected, but once the verdict is read out to the public it must be disseminated to as many people as possible.

During a news conference in Jakarta on Monday, Mahfud said the court has not reached any conclusion, saying a closed-door session discussing the verdict will take place on Wednesday.

“That means no formal verdict is made yet, whether by 6 to 3 or 5 to 4,” he said.

“The Constitutional Court is expected to deliver the verdict on whether we are going to have an open- or closed-list representation system within a week from now,” he said.

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