USU Public Relations – Universitas Sumatera Utara (USU) has affirmed that all stages of the Nomination and Screening of Rector Candidates for the 2026–2031 period will be conducted in accordance with existing regulations. This was conveyed by the Chair of the Committee, Prof. Dr. Thamrin, M.Sc., accompanied by the Committee Secretary, Prof. Dr. Ir. Luhut Sihombing, M.P., during a press conference at the Office of the University Board of Trustees (MWA). The event was moderated by Amalia Meutia, M.Psi., Psychologist, Head of Public Relations, Protocol, and Promotion of USU, on Tuesday (September 23, 2025).
Prof. Thamrin explained that after the nomination stage, eight candidates have been confirmed to proceed to the audition phase, which will be held on Wednesday (September 24, 2025) at the USU Auditorium. All candidates have fulfilled the administrative requirements in line with the election mechanism.
The eight candidates are: Dr. Drs. Firman Syarif, M.Si, Ak, C.A.; Prof. Dr. Muryanto Amin, S.Sos., M.Si.; Prof. Dr. Poppy Anjelisa Zaitun Hasibuan, S.Si., M.Si., Apt.; Dr. dr. Johny Marpaung, M.Ked (OG), Sp.OG, Subsp-KFM; Prof. Dr. Syahril Efendi, S.Si., M.I.T.; Prof. Dr. Isfenti Sadalia, S.E., M.E.; Prof. Dr. Eng. Himsar Ambarita, S.T., M.T.; and Prof. Dr. Hasim Purba, S.H., M.Hum.
“There are three stages in the process: nomination, screening, and election. After the audition, the Academic Senate of USU will select a maximum of three candidates with the highest votes. It can be fewer than three, but not more than three, using the one man, one vote mechanism,” Prof. Thamrin reiterated.
He added that the candidates filtered by the Academic Senate will then be submitted to the Board of Trustees (MWA) for a plenary session, typically held in Jakarta at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology (Kemenristekdikti). The 21 members of MWA USU will then determine the Rector-elect for the 2026–2031 period on October 2, 2025.
Prof. Thamrin also noted a slight difference from previous periods: during this election cycle, the Ministry requested a question-and-answer session to explore the ideas and visions of the candidates before voting takes place.
Prof. Dr. Ir. Luhut Sihombing, M.P., emphasized that all stages of the process are aligned with the USU Statute, which is regulated under Government Regulation No. 16 of 2014 on the Statute of Universitas Sumatera Utara.
“We are fully committed to implementing the process in line with the mechanisms and rules in place,” he stressed.
The committee also responded to negative issues circulated by certain groups. According to Prof. Thamrin, such dynamics are part of democracy and freedom of expression. However, he emphasized that these issues would not disrupt the integrity of the election stages.
“As long as rector candidates meet the requirements stipulated in the USU Statute, that is sufficient, and we will continue to follow the mechanism as it should be—based on transparency, accountability, and democratic principles,” Prof. Thamrin underlined.
Prof. Luhut Sihombing further stated that the committee adheres strictly to the “rules of the game.” Any legal matters raised will be reviewed and analyzed in line with the prevailing regulations.
“We want to emphasize that USU is strongly committed to ensuring the success of the rector election process. While we remain attentive to ongoing issues, as long as they do not conflict with the regulations, they will not affect the stages we have set,” he added.
Also present at the press conference were other committee members: Fadhullah, S.E., M.M.; Dr. Husni Thamrin, S.Sos., MSP; Ir. Indra Chahaya S., M.Si; Boy Laksamana, S.H., M.Hum; Mhd. Pujiono, S.S., M.Hum., Ph.D.; Dr. Muhammad Anggia Muchtar, S.T., MM.IT; Prof. Drs. Heru Santosa, M.S., Ph.D.; Prof. Dr. Ameta Primasari, drg., MDSc, M.Kes, Sp.MM; and Prof. Dr. Apri Heri Iswanto, S.Hut., M.Si.