New System of Selecting Candidates for Justices Lauded

Surabaya, E Java (Antara) - Former chief justice of the Constitutional Court Mahfud MD lauded the new system of selecting candidates for justices of the Constitutional Court. Under the new system, recruitment is made through selection by a Team of Selection formed by the president. "Forming a team to select the justices of the constitutional Court is a good step forward. It deserves appreciation," Mahfud said here on Friday. He described the forming of the team as a significant progress as it would guarantee better quality of process of recruitment. There was no such team under the previous regime, he said. "Now the candidates are tested by the team in an open interviews. This is a good start by President Joko Widodo," he said. The team was formed by the president to select candidates to replace chief justice Hamdan Zoelva, who will end his term of office next month. There are 16 candidates including Hamdan Zoelva, who seeks a second term. Mahfud MD refused to comment on the quality of the 16 candidates who have passed qualification test. The team is headed by Prof. Saldi Isra with other members including Refli Harun , Prof. Todung Mulya Lubis, Prof. Maruarar Siahaan, Prof. Widodo Ekatjahjana, Harjono and Satya Arinanto. The interviews would be held toward the end of this year until January 6, 2015 and installation by the president would follow in the next day. (*)