Mahfud MD: President Needs to Take Emergency Action to Fix the World of Justice

JAKARTA, KOMPAS – Former Chief Justice Mahfud MD urged President Prabowo Subianto to take emergency measures to reform the judiciary. This is particularly in light of the revelation of several alleged bribery cases involving judges.

"The president, in my opinion, needs to take emergency action. The emergency action is now to immediately mix (the composition of judges), then make a perppu (Government Regulation in Lieu of Law) for certain matters that must be completed in a short time," Mahfud said in a written statement, Wednesday (4/23/2025).

On April 11, 2025, the Attorney General's Office arrested the Chairman of the South Jakarta District Court, Muhammad Arif Nuryanto, on suspicion of bribery amounting to IDR 60 billion related to the handling of a corruption case involving the export of crude palm oil (CPO) that involves three major companies. In addition to Arif, the Attorney General's Office has designated three judges from the Jakarta Corruption Court as suspects and detained them. They are Djuyamto as the presiding judge, along with Ali Muhtarom and Agam Syarif as panel judges.

Previously, precisely at the end of October 2024, investigators from the Attorney General's Office also arrested three judges suspected of being involved in a bribery case to acquit Gregorius Ronald Tannur, the defendant in the murder of Dini Sera Afrianti, his girlfriend. They are three judges from the Surabaya District Court, namely Heru Hanindyo, Erintuah Damanik, and Mangapul, who had previously issued a verdict of acquittal for Ronald.

Mahfud believes that the revelation of the CPO corruption case involving judges, lawyers, and court clerks exposes the collusion of crime among three elements of the judiciary, namely the South Jakarta District Court, the Central Jakarta District Court, and the North Jakarta District Court.

"We have reached a consensus with those who have long stated that our court ecosystem is damaged. Corruption, collusion, and the buying and selling of cases occur everywhere, along with the manipulation of judges, prosecutors, and police, making the court system filthy," Mahfud revealed.

Still related to the CPO case, Mahfud recounted that one of the suspects, Judge Djuyamto, along with 20 other young judges, had come to the Judicial Commission (KY) in 2012 to express their desire to break the chain of crime in the Supreme Court. Unfortunately, in the end, Djuyamto became embroiled in allegations of corruption.

"Well, in 2025 he was caught like that. This means that it is difficult for people to be good in court because the ecosystem is already rotten. We have established the KY (Judicial Commission) to oversee judges, yet the authority of the KY has been amputated, and the recommendations of the KY have been disregarded by the Supreme Court," he stated.

Given the chaotic state of the judicial system, according to Mahfud, the President may intervene to rectify it; in fact, this is part of his duties, as a President is not only the head of state but also has responsibilities as a law enforcer represented by the National Police, the Attorney General's Office, and the Corruption Eradication Commission.

The Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs for the 2019-2024 period exemplified President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY), whom he regarded as having set a good example for reforming the judiciary during his leadership. This was demonstrated in the rescue of the KPK, where SBY himself established Team 8 to investigate criminal charges against two KPK leaders.

The case emerged towards the end of 2009 when a conflict occurred between the National Police and the Corruption Eradication Commission. At that time, two commissioners of the Corruption Eradication Commission, namely Bibit Samad Rianto and Chandra Marta Hamzah, were detained by the Criminal Investigation Agency of the National Police.

In addition to SBY, according to Mahfud, a positive step was also taken by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi), who was considered quite responsive regarding the release of Henry Surya in the Indosurya case and Surya Darmadi in the Duta Palma case. Jokowi also requested recommendations for measures from the Legal Reform Acceleration Team.

It is noteworthy that following the arrest of several judges on April 11, the Supreme Court conducted a large-scale rotation of judges serving in the district courts in the Jakarta and Surabaya regions.

At least 61 judges who were originally assigned to four district courts in Jakarta and 10 judges in the Surabaya court have been redistributed to several regions, replaced by judges who were originally serving in the Supreme Court and district courts in the regions.

At the Central Jakarta District Court, for example, out of a total of 35 judges, 11 have been transferred to other courts in the regions. Meanwhile, 11 judges from a total of 28 judges at the West Jakarta District Court have also been rotated. Similarly, 13 judges from 30 judges at the South Jakarta District Court, 14 judges from a total of 30 judges at the East Jakarta District Court, and 12 judges from 24 judges at the North Jakarta District Court have undergone rotation. Additionally, 10 judges from a total of 41 judges at the Surabaya District Court have been affected.

They will be replaced by new judges selected from various regions. The West Jakarta District Court and the Central Jakarta District Court will receive an addition of 15 new judges, the South Jakarta District Court will receive 14 judges, the East Jakarta District Court will receive 18 judges, and the North Jakarta District Court will receive 21 new judges. Meanwhile, the Surabaya District Court will receive an additional 14 judges.

In addition to the transfer of judges, three District Courts in Jakarta, namely the Central Jakarta District Court, the South Jakarta District Court, and the North Jakarta District Court, have received new leadership.

The Central Jakarta District Court will be led by Husnul Khotimah, who previously served as the Chair of the Balikpapan District Court, while the position of deputy will be held by Efendi, who previously served as the Chair of the Dumai District Court.

The Chairperson of the South Jakarta District Court will be replaced by Agus Wahyudi, who was previously the Chairperson of the Banjarmasin District Court, while the position of Deputy Chairperson will be held by I Gusti Ayu Susilawati, who was formerly the Chairperson of the Gresik District Court. Meanwhile, the Chairperson of the North Jakarta District Court will be Yunto S Hamonangan Tampubolon, who was previously the Chairperson of the Serang District Court, and his deputy will be Salman Alfarasi, who formerly served as the Chairperson of the Tanjung Karang District Court.