Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) has assessed that alleged corruption\nin the processing of stay permits for foreign nationals (WNA), which\nreportedly involves officials from the Ministry of Immigration and\nCorrectional Services\u2014including Deputy Minister Silmy Karim\u2014serves as\nevidence that extortion practices in public services continue to occur\nsystemically within the bureaucracy.<\/p>\n
ICW\u2019s Head of Legal and Investigation Division, Wana Alamsayah,\nstated that the case demonstrates that corruption in licensing services\nhas not been eradicated despite ongoing bureaucratic reforms. \u201cThe\ninvolvement of a deputy minister and staff in the alleged corruption of\nforeign stay permit processing proves that extortion in public services\nis still occurring, even structurally and systemically,\u201d Wana said in a\nstatement on Friday.<\/p>\n
According to Alamsyah, the common pattern of extortion in the\nbureaucracy involves making access to services difficult, delaying the\nissuance of permits, or creating administrative hurdles to pressure\napplicants into making illegal payments. He noted that this reflects a\nfailure of the government to build a clean and corruption-free licensing\nsystem.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, ICW highlighted the weakness of internal oversight\nwithin the Ministry of Immigration. Alamsyah argued that the\nInspectorate General failed to detect or prevent the alleged extortion.\nHe suggested this failure may stem from power imbalances within the\nbureaucracy and the potential pressure auditors face when supervising\nhigh-ranking officials. Consequently, ICW is urging the Corruption\nEradication Commission (KPK) to summon the Inspector General of the\nMinistry of Immigration to investigate why these practices went\nundetected.<\/p>\n
ICW also urged the KPK to apply money laundering laws (TPPU) to trace\nthe flow of funds from the alleged corruption. This approach would allow\ninvestigators to uncover other parties potentially benefiting from the\ncrime, including the owners of accounts used to collect the funds. The\nwatchdog also called for the KPK to summon all parties involved in the\nstay permit process since 2019, following findings by the Financial\nTransaction Reports and Analysis Centre (PPATK) regarding suspicious\ntransactions involving 96 bank accounts belonging to 35 Ministry of\nImmigration employees, totalling approximately Rp366.7 billion.<\/p>\n
Additionally, ICW emphasised that the use of the State Officials\u2019\nWealth Report (LHKPN) must be strengthened as an early warning system to\ndetect unnatural increases in wealth. Alamsyah noted an unusual wealth\nincrease of approximately Rp5 billion attributed to Silmy Karim between\n2024 and 2025, which warrants attention from law enforcement\nagencies.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/corruption-allegations-in-foreigner-stay-permit-process-point-to-systemic-extortion-in-public-services-1780804707", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }