Regarding the Village Head Asking for a 9-Year Term of Office, Here's the Response of a UM Surabaya Legal Expert

• 23 Jan
• 2023

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Regarding the Village Head Asking for a 9-Year Term of Office, Here's the Response of a UM Surabaya Legal Expert

• Article
• By Uswah Sahal
• Law
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University of Muhammadiyah Surabaya (UM Surabaya) constitutional law expert, Achmad Hariri, also provided comments on the discourse on the village head's term of office from six years to three terms to nine years to two terms of office.

"What is being discussed is actually contrary to the constitution, what we need to understand is that the constitution is the basic rule that is the source of law formation," Hariri said Monday (23/1/23)

Hariri said, in its development a modern state constitution must be constitutionalism. This means that the constitution must limit power, this is done to avoid acts of abuse as a result of not limiting power.

It is stated in the politics of constitutional law in the first amendment to article 7 of the 1945 Constitution, the presidential term of office is 5 years and is limited to two terms, therefore the 1945 constitution is constitutionalism. Limitations on the powers of high state institutions are constitutional, meaning that the president is a maximum of 10 years, as well as the term of office for Regents and Governors.

"Restriction of power is important in administering the state, power that is not limited will tend to be corrupt," he stressed again.

Hariri added, in Law no. 6 of 2014 concerning villages there are norms that are contrary to the constitution, namely in article 39 regarding the term of office of the Village Head. In this article, the tenure of the village head is relatively longer compared to executive positions in supra-village government, which is 6 years and can be re-elected for up to three terms, meaning that the village head can occupy the number one position in the village for up to eighteen (18) years.

"This term of office is relatively eight years longer than those of presidents, governors, regents and mayors, so it will be possible for village heads to abuse their authority and this term of office is against constitutionalism," he added.

Even though the spirit of constitutionalism is the limitation of power. He said that if power is left long enough it will also have the potential to build an oligarchy.

Hariri added that the maximum term of office for a village head is 18 years. In fact, the limitation of government power can be seen when there is a first amendment to the 1945 Constitution, namely the limitation of the term of office of the ruler, in this case the president.

"Unlimited power will produce power that tends to be corrupt. The tenure of the village head is unconstitutional because it is not in accordance with the constitutionalism adhered to in the country's constitution," he concluded.