Jokowi's Camp: Prosecutor Can Revise Charges in Fake Degree Case

The East Jakarta District Court has accepted the exception filed by the defendant, Tifauzia Tyassuma, widely known as Dr. Tifa, in the defamation case related to allegations of President Joko Widodo's (Jokowi) fake degree. Jokowi's legal team stated that the lawsuit can continue if the prosecutor revises the construction of the charges. Rivai Kusumanegara, Jokowi's lawyer, expressed respect for the court's decision, stating, "Whatever the decision, it is part of the check and balance of an ongoing legal process." He explained that the indictment was deemed void due to "obscure legal" issues, stemming from the simultaneous use of articles from both the old and new Criminal Procedure Codes (KUHAP) in the subsidiary indictment. "So, if we examine it, it is more about the use of old and new KUHAP articles in a subsidiary indictment that, according to the panel, caused the indictment to be vague," Rivai said. Regarding such a ruling, Rivai continued, the prosecutor will revise the construction of the articles used to comply with the judge's verdict. After that, the public prosecutor can re-file the charges for trial. Rivai emphasized that the case can still proceed. "So, again, this is more about a correction to the form of the indictment, which is considered legally obscure, and it is not related to the cessation of other cases. This case can still continue, and the prosecutor just needs to fix the indictment," he stated. Rivai assessed that the mixing of provisions from the old and new KUHAP made the indictment filed by the Public Prosecutor's Office (JPU) considered unclear. "But perhaps this mixture is considered an ambiguity, a vagueness. In my opinion, this is a good correction, rather than the case continuing and becoming a problem midway. So, at this initial stage, a correction will be made by the panel. The prosecutor just needs to fix and perfect it," Rivai concluded. Meanwhile, the defendant, Tifauzia Tyassuma, expressed gratitude for the panel of judges accepting her exception. Tifa stated that she had received confirmation from Gadjah Mada University (UGM), Jokowi's alma mater for his undergraduate studies, in the form of academic transcript documents. "There is undeniable evidence that a Forestry graduate from UGM who graduated in 1985 must have documents like this, namely a complete transcript of 161 credits. Then, the transcript is fully signed by the Dean and the First Vice Dean. This is irrefutable evidence," Tifa said.