If it is consistent with the wishes of the 1945 Constitution, then the procedure for electing the Chief of Police should ideally refer to the meaning of the Police as a “state apparatus”.

By Agus Riwanto

18 Feb 2026 17:00 WIB · English

he Police Reform Acceleration Team has just released recommendations to President Prabowo Subianto regarding two proposed options for the selection of the Chief of Police, either to be directly elected by the president or chosen by the DPR. This recommendation has sparked public attention as the current procedure for selecting the Chief of Police is considered less than ideal. What would be the ideal selection process for the Chief of Police as stipulated in the 1945 Constitution?

Article 34 Paragraph (4) of the 1945 Constitution stipulates that the Indonesian National Police is a state apparatus institution that is categorized as a constitutional organ (constitutional organ) which explicitly includes the Indonesian National Police in the 1945 Constitution. This means that the Indonesian National Police is an organ that has an urgent position in the state. Not all state institutions are explicitly regulated in the Constitution, because some are only regulated in laws, government regulations, presidential regulations, or even below.

Thus, the existence of the National Police is in line with the existence of the state. Without the National Police, the state cannot stand firm, and law enforcement does not function. Furthermore, the National Police should not be tampered with or altered by the Parliament and the President as the lawmakers. That is why the Chief of Police, as the highest leader of the National Police, urges that the procedures for their selection be regulated, so that it aligns with their position as a permanent constitutional organ.

Article 8 of Law No. 2/2022 concerning the National Police (Law on the National Police) stipulates the position of the National Police under the president and accountable to the president in accordance with the laws and regulations. This placement indicates that the National Police is a state apparatus, as the president, in the presidential system of government that we adhere to, is the pinnacle of state power. The president holds dual powers as the head of state and the head of government, precisely as stated in Article 4 of the 1945 Constitution. This means that the Law on the National Police is compatible with Article 4 and Article 34 Paragraph (4) of the 1945 Constitution in positioning the National Police as a state apparatus.

The election of the Chief of Police is the President’s domain

However, uniquely, there is one article, Article 11 Paragraph (1) in the Indonesian National Police Law, which is not compatible with the meaning of Article 4 and Article 34 Paragraph (4) of the 1945 Constitution. This article states that the Chief of Police is appointed and dismissed by the president with the approval of the DPR. The meaning of the phrase “with the approval of the DPR” contains a debatable interpretation, whether the Chief of Police is really under the president and is responsible to the president. Because in reality, the election procedure still involves the DPR as a political institution, and often the phrase “with the approval of the DPR” is interpreted as a form of fit and proper test, so that it seems that the Chief of Police is under the DPR and is responsible to the DPR.

If consistent with the provisions of the 1945 Constitution, the procedure for the selection of the Chief of Police should ideally refer to the meaning of the National Police as a “state apparatus,” making the Chief of Police a representation of the state positioned below the president. Thus, the authority and actions of the Chief of Police in leading the police organization in law enforcement, executing the Criminal Code and the Criminal Procedure Code as well as other laws, are solely for and on behalf of the state, in order to realize objective and transparent justice.

Such a role means that the National Police operates within the executive realm in public service in the field of law enforcement. Therefore, the procedure for selecting the Chief of Police actually falls within the executive domain, namely the president as the highest executive in the country, as long as the procedure involves public participation, with clear and accountable criteria that can be justified in accordance with the 1945 Constitution.

Reformulation of the National Police Chief election

Ideally, the President in reformulating the procedures for the selection of the Chief of Police could involve the public, academics from various fields, practitioners, and civil society organizations, organized in the form of a team under the President’s control.

Even if the National Police Chief election procedure involves the House of Representatives (DPR) as political representation, it can be done through confirmation and opinions on the presidentially nominated National Police Chief candidate based on recommendations from a presidentially appointed team. This approach does not diminish the DPR’s role, but rather maintains its position as a partner to the president. This is because the constitutional system places the DPR and the president as equal organs, providing checks and balances for each other.

The reformulation of the procedure for the selection of the Chief of Police, which is directly appointed by the president and only involves the DPR in the form of non-binding confirmation and opinions, will allow the Chief of Police to be more insulated from political interests, ensuring that the superior of the Chief of Police is solely the president on behalf of the state, and to be more independent.

Conversely, the procedure for the selection of the Chief of Police so far, based on Article 11 of the Police Law, fundamentally allows the president to appoint and dismiss the Chief of Police with the approval of the DPR. This has led all presidents since the era of Megawati Soekarnoputri, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, to Joko Widodo to always propose a single candidate for the Chief of Police to the DPR. This method is inappropriate as it gives the impression that the president is dictating to the DPR to choose a Chief of Police according to the president’s preference. Therefore, this procedure needs to be reformulated by institutionalizing it permanently in the form of a law.

Therefore, a revision of the Police Law is necessary, changing the phrase “with the approval of the DPR” in Article 11 Paragraph (1) to “with the consideration of the DPR.” Such actions are commonly undertaken in constitutional practice, for instance, after the Constitutional Court Decision No. 27/PUU-XI/2013 in the judicial review of Article 8 Paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) of Law No. 3/2009 concerning the Supreme Court, the selection of Supreme Court Justices no longer places the DPR in the role of “choosing,” but only “confirming” the proposed candidates for Supreme Court Justices from the Judicial Commission (KY). This model can be replicated in the selection of the Chief of Police. This is necessary to ensure that the procedure for selecting the Chief of Police is a routine state agenda carried out by the president, with the selection process involving the DPR as a partner of the president.

Strengthening the National Police Commission

There is no need to worry that the National Police Chief, directly appointed by the President, will lead the police into a precarious situation to perpetuate the political power of the president. Of course, this must be accompanied by strengthening the National Police Commission (Kompolnas), redesigned as a special institution that functions to control, supervise, and evaluate the performance of the National Police Chief with binding decisions. In addition, the oversight function of the Parliament as a partner of the president in monitoring the performance of the police and Kompolnas needs to be institutionalized in a stronger, more participatory, and accountable manner.

Agus RiwantoProfessor of Constitutional Law, Faculty of Law, Sebelas Maret University, Surakarta and Deputy Chairman of the Central Board of the HTN-HAN Lecturers Association

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