Hendro D Situmorang, Jakarta. – The Constitutional Court will convene for a verdict in the presidential election dispute after concluding hearings and witness examination, a spokesman said on Sunday.
The plaintiffs – defeated candidates Anies Baswedan and Ganjar Pranowo – and the General Election Commission (KPU) as the defendant are instructed to submit their final statements to the court.
Both Anies and Ganjar have accused election winner Prabowo Subianto of receiving an unfair advantage due to implicit support from President Joko Widodo's government.
Prabowo, who won the election by 58 percent of the vote, appointed the president's son, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, as his running mate.
His rivals alleged that the government intensified social aid distribution ahead of the Feb. 14 polls to sway voters for him and deployed the police and other state agencies to influence voters in his favor.
They also questioned the legitimacy of Gibran's candidacy as the running mate for Prabowo.
"The hearings on evidence examination in the presidential election dispute have been concluded. All parties are instructed to submit their final statements," Constitutional Court spokesman Fajar Laksono said in Jakarta.
The deadline for the submission has been set for April 16.
Fajar said the eight justices handling the trial will continue to work to reach a verdict during the Eid al-Fitr holiday season.
"The court will take a break on April 10-11 to observe the Eid and resume work afterward," he said.
Fajar claimed that the defendant and the plaintiffs have been given an equal opportunity to present arguments, witnesses, and evidence until the conclusion of court hearings.
In addition, the justices took the initiative to summon four cabinet members and hear their testimonies.
"After April 16, the court will convene to reach a verdict that will be announced on April 22," Fajar said.
From March 27 to 29, the court invited the plaintiffs, the defendant, the Election Oversight Body (Bawaslu), and the Prabowo legal team to deliver their opening statements.
Hearings to cross-examine witnesses and evidence were conducted from April 1-4, during which Anies sent seven experts and 11 witnesses while Ganjar invited nine experts and 10 witnesses.
The Prabowo camp, who voluntarily took part in the trial as a "party of interest", presented eight experts and six witnesses.