Ina Parlina, Jakarta – Lawmakers have to follow the constitution and prioritize the common good when it comes to law-making. Otherwise legislation will only accommodate their own political interests, critics have said.

Veri Junaidi, a researcher with the Association for Elections and Democracy (Perludem) and Ronald Rofiandri from the Center for Legal and Policy Studies (PSHK) lamented the number of poor quality laws.

"[Lawmakers'] duties are to accommodate public aspirations, not their own interests or those of certain groups [...] without such an understanding, they will only make bad laws," Veri told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

Ronald meanwhile said political interests had eroded the lawmaking process but it could held entirely responsible. "Political interests exist in the legislative process. The lawmakers must not misuse it and they must increase their lawmaking capability," he said.

They commented on the recent statement from Constitutional Court chief justice Mahfud MD who said that the lack of professionalism among lawmakers and horse trading had resulted in poor quality legislation.

In 2012, the Constitutional Court granted 30 judicial review cases, or 31 percent of the 97 cases in total. The court overruled 31 cases, or 32 percent, and rejected 30 cases, or 31 percent, while the remaining six complaints were withdrawn by the plaintiffs.

Although the amount of revoked legislation was only 31 percent, Mahfud said the number of poor quality laws is increasing. As a comparison, the court cited that on average it had granted 20.44 percent of the total requests for judicial reviews between 2008 and 2012.

Aside from lawmakers' incompetency, poor legislation was caused by political trade-offs among politicians. Political transactions among politicians in the House of Representatives often takes place especially during the deliberation of political bills such as the Legislative Election Law.

"It is undeniable that laws come from various interests. The final outcome should be in line with the constitution," the court said.

The figure indeed showed that the lawmakers failed to accommodate the public, said Veri. Ronald added that the government was also responsible for bad laws.

"We all need to understand that once a law is enacted, it belongs to everyone," he said. "The lawmakers indeed are the ones who deliberate the bills. Both the government and the lawmakers are responsible as they collectively make the laws."

Veri is of the same opinion, saying that the government should ensure that a law accommodates all citizens. "The government mostly focuses on drafting bills that have a direct connection to its interests. For instance the Intelligence Law," he said.

He called on the government and the House to work together to increase the quality of laws. "They can begin by listening to each other during judicial reviews. Don't sit there as two opposing sides. Rather try to mutually puzzle it out," he said.

Ronald agreed, saying that both parties must undertake detailed research before drafting any laws.