The Indonesian Constitutional Court is set to issue a decision late Tuesday on a legal challenge seeking to invalidate Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka’s election win. Last month, plaintiffs led by a former Indonesian deputy law minister filed a petition to the court asking its nine-judge panel to annul Gibran’s vice presidency, arguing that his overseas education credentials did not satisfy Indonesian eligibility requirements and were improperly accepted by election authorities. If the court rules in favor of the plaintiffs, it could remove Gibran from his post and further undermine President Prabowo Subianto’s administration.
Prabowo became the eighth president of Southeast Asia’s largest economy after a successful but often controversial election campaign alongside Gibran, the 39-year-old eldest son of Prabowo’s predecessor, Joko Widodo. The petition argues that Gibran’s overseas education credentials, from Orchid Park Secondary School in Singapore, UTS Insearch in Australia, and the Management Development Institute of Singapore (MDIS), do not meet Indonesia’s requirements for high office. While Indonesian election law requires presidential and vice-presidential candidates to have completed senior high school or an equivalent level of education, the plaintiffs claim Gibran failed to adequately prove he had met the criteria.
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The court’s deliberation centers on whether these international institutions meet Indonesian academic standards. The education ministry had previously issued equivalency certificates, but no diploma was submitted during Gibran’s application, according to court transcripts. Judges examined testimony from education experts, diplomatic attaches, and the education ministry before arriving at their conclusion.
A controversial 2023 ruling by the Constitutional Court exempted Gibran from age restrictions, paving the way for his candidacy. The move sparked protests and criticism from students, activists, and legal scholars.
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