"People power" movement does not contravene Constitution: Syamsuddin

"People power" movement does not contravene Constitution: Syamsuddin

However, the crucial aspect is that it must be held peacefully, with no violence or anarchy
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Din Syamsuddin, a prominent figure of Muhammadiyah, Indonesia's second-largest Muslim organization, believes that the "people power" movement does not go contrary to the Constitution and hence must not be thwarted.

"However, the crucial aspect is that it must be held peacefully, with no violence or anarchy," Syamsuddin remarked here on Sunday.

Security officers must also handle protestors in a peaceful and protective way, Syamsuddin, chairman of the Advisory Council of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), emphasized.

Syamsuddin said he did not support a "people power" movement" that forces one's will and leads to turmoil, as it will pit Muslims against one another.

"The social impact is too high. That is my stance. I am a supporter of peace," he noted.

Syamsuddin also did not favor the delegitimization of the General Election Commission (KPU), but if the Commission failed to execute the elections as mandated by the Constitution in a fair, honest, accountable, and transparent manner, then the results would be constitutionally defective.

He called on the need to address and verify electoral frauds, and to this end, if the concerned allegation is not corroborated, it is a slander. However, if it is found to be true, it would be a disaster and could not be underestimated, he added.

"Earlier, it was attributed to human error. However, if such incidents are piling up, it is not the result of human negligence and should be verified," he stated in reference to reports of inconsistencies in vote count data entries by the KPU.

Syamsuddin also appealed to Indonesian Muslims to not be mistrustful of Pancasila since Islam is the religion closest to Pancasila, especially its first principle based on the concept of the oneness of God (Tawhid). Indonesia organized simultaneous legislative and presidential elections on April 17, 2019.

Several parties, dissatisfied with the preliminary results of vote count, leveled allegations of fraud on the election executors. Several of them were keen to hold a mass protest or "people power" movement on May 22.

In the meantime, the Indonesian Police have called on the public to not hold a mass protest on May 22 once the KPU announced the outcomes of the 2019 general elections.

"On May 22, we urge people to not hold any mass gathering," Inspector General Iqbal, spokesman of the Indonesian Police (Polri), stated at a press conference here on Friday, adding that terrorists could use the mass gathering to further their devious plans.

At the press conference, the police showed a video of an alleged terrorist, identified by his initials as DY, opening up about his plan to commit a terror attack on May 22, 2019.