The North Sumatra National Movement to Secure the Ulema Fatwa (GNPF) has submitted a suit versus the General Elections Commission (KPU) and the Elections Supervisory Firm (Bawaslu) demanding the two state bodies postpone the upcoming local elections in Medan.
The class action suit was filed by 10 members of the GNPF at the Medan District Court on Wednesday.
The head of the GNPF ' s local elections working group in North Sumatra, Tumpal Panggabean, said Medan had seen a rising trend in brand-new COVID-19 cases in the last three months, that made local elections impractical.
” The number of brand-new COVID-19 cases in Medan is increasing every day, the city had been declared as a level 3 red zone,” Tumpal told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.
” If [the government] insists on performing the regional elections on Dec. 9 as prepared, it ' s almost specific the elections will become a scary scene,” he added.
Tumpal explained that, based upon World Health Company standards, the federal government required to satisfy 6 criteria prior to performing elections in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“[According to the WHO,] the federal government needs to prove that the outbreak is currently under control which the transmission threats have been lowered. The Medan administration has not met these requirements,” he stated.
Tumpal argued that performing elections amid the rising number of COVID-19 cases was an act versus the law.
” What ' s making use of regional elections if it inflicts casualties? Don ' t make the elections a killing maker for Medan residents,” he stated.
According to Tumpal, Medan mayoral candidates took a big entourage with them upon registering for the elections at the Medan KPU workplace.
” Who can guarantee that there is no COVID-19 transmission[at the event] That is our main issue at the moment,” he said.
The head of the Medan General Elections Commission (KPUD), Agussyah Damanik, stated he would soon coordinate with the North Sumatra KPUD and the National Elections Commission relating to the claim.
” We wear ' t have the authority to delay the elections, we ' re just carrying out the law and KPU guidelines on synchronised local elections. Just the National Elections Commission has the authority to put off the elections,” he said. (nal)
