Constructing Institutional Safeguards in Fast Track Legislation to Maintain the Legal Politics of Law-Making for the Paramount Interest of the People

Fast Track Legislation (FTL) as a method of law-making began to be practiced in Indonesia during the administration of President Joko Widodo. In contrast to other jurisdictions where FTL has long been institutionalized and operates without major controversy, its practice in Indonesia has provoked extensive public rejection. Drafting and passing laws at extraordinary speed has been criticized as procedurally defective, substantively inadequate, and inconsistent with the foundational principles of the rule of law and democratic constitutionalism. Consequently, laws formulated through this FTL have frequently been challenged by the public before the Constitutional Court through judicial review. This study examines the epistemological and ontological conception of FTL; how FTL is regulated and practiced in several countries; and what the ideal concept would be for formulating FTL in Indonesia in order to align legislative politics with the nation’s legal ideals. This study applies a normative juridical approach through literature review and comparative analysis. The findings are as follows: first, several countries, such as the United Kingdom, the United States, and New Zealand, regulate FTL as a law-making method, but restrict its application to extraordinary measures, rather than adopting it as a standard legislative procedure. Second, adopting FTL into Indonesia requires modification and contextual adaptation to the country’s constitutional and socio-political context. Third, establishing clear normative boundaries and institutional safeguards is essential in implementing FTL to ensure that the legal politics of law-making genuinely serve the paramount interest of the people.