Bagus BT Saragih, Jakarta – Critics are divided over a judicial review request against the Judicial Mafia Taskforce filed by a number of activists grouped under the so-called "Petisi 28" movement.
The activists announced they would file a review lawsuit with the Supreme Court on Tuesday, requesting the court declare the Presidential Decree No. 37/2009 on the establishment of the Judicial Mafia Taskforce illegal.
The plan has triggered debates between those supporting the taskforce's existence and those questioning the taskforce's legal basis and its effectiveness in combating judicial corruption.
Constitutional Court chairman Mahfud MD said filing the lawsuit at the Supreme Court was an incorrect legal step, saying that a presidential decree should be reviewed by a state administrative court.
"Besides, I think the taskforce is quite beneficial. It has managed to uncover some legal scandals like the one involving former tax official Gayus Tambunan," he said Monday.
Prominent law expert Todung Mulya Lubis, who recently joined the advisory council of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party, shared Mahfud's opinion.
He said the taskforce could act as a support for law enforcers since it had no authority to enforce law offenders. "The taskforce, indeed, is toothless. But its existence can put pressure on the police and prosecutors to speed up their investigation," Todung said.
Former president Megawati Soekarnoputri, however, voiced her support of the lawsuit, arguing for the legality of the taskforce.
Megawati, the chairwoman of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), deemed the existing legal enforcement institutions were good but must be optimized.
NGO the Setara Institute also supported Petisi 28's plan, saying the lawsuit should aim to verify the taskforce's legality, rather than dismiss it altogether.
"The taskforce, indeed, has created public hope for better law enforcement in the country. However, with no clear legal basis or firm vision, the taskforce can be considered only as a tool to upgrade the government's image," Setara chairman Hendardi said in a press statement.
A member of Petisi 28, Haris Rusli Moti, said the taskforce was nothing more than a tool designed by President Yudhoyono to improve his image. "The taskforce is actually useless and is causing in overlapping between the legal enforcement institutions," he said.
The activists argued that the 1945 Constitution did not give a president the authority to form such a taskforce. "Law enforcement can only be carried out by institutions formed under laws, not a presidential decree," another activist, Catur Agus Saptono, said.
He said there were only three legal law enforcement institutions in the country – the National Police, the Attorney General's Office and the Corruption Eradication Commission.
Commenting on the lawsuit, taskforce secretary Denny Indrayana said he understood the petition's stance. "I know many parties feel uncomfortable with us," he said.
Another taskforce member, Mas Achmad Santosa, said the attempt to review the taskforce was an attempt by the mafia to "strike back".