The steps taken by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to\ninvestigate allegations of corruption in excise management within the\nDirectorate General of Customs and Excise should be respected as part of\nefforts to clean up industry governance from bribery, gratification, and\ndistortions that harm the state.<\/p>\n
In this case, the KPK has stated that it is delving into excise\nmanagement, summoning cigarette entrepreneurs from Central Java and East\nJava, and examining a cigarette entrepreneur from Pasuruan, East Java,\nas a witness. The KPK also stated that the examination aims to deepen\nthe understanding of the excise management process and mechanisms in the\nfield.<\/p>\n
Cigarette entrepreneur and owner of Bandar Rokok Nusantara Global\nGroup (BARONG Group), HRM Khalilur R Abdullah Sahlawiy, emphasised that\nlaw enforcement must be directed towards cleaning up dirty practices,\nnot indiscriminately striking all players in the people\u2019s cigarette\nindustry.<\/p>\n
\u201cCrackdowns on alleged corruption at Customs and Excise must be\nsupported. The state must not lose to excise mafias, stamp mafias, or\ndirty games that damage trade practices. However, the KPK must also be\nvery thorough, careful, and think comprehensively so that the handling\nof this case does not turn into a blind blow against the legal and\ngrowing people\u2019s industry, especially in Madura,\u201d said the entrepreneur,\nfamiliarly known as Gus Lilur, in a written statement on Monday\n(6\/4).<\/p>\n
He assessed that the people\u2019s cigarette industry in tobacco-producing\nareas must not be placed in the same position as deviant actors who\nexploit corruption loopholes. According to him, many small and\nmedium-sized enterprises in the cigarette sector are actually trying to\nenter the legal path, pay their obligations, and build businesses from\nthe bottom in the midst of an industry structure that is not always\nfriendly to them.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo not generalise. Do not let a major case at the excise management\nlevel lead to all people\u2019s cigarette business actors being treated as if\nthey are part of the problem. That is unfair. Those who are wrong must\nbe prosecuted, but those growing legally must not be killed,\u201d he\nstressed.<\/p>\n
Gus Lilur reminded that the KPK itself has linked this case to excise\nmanagement and the proliferation of illegal cigarettes, while\ninvestigators are also examining the realities of procedures that\ncigarette entrepreneurs should follow in excise management. Therefore,\nhe said, the investigators\u2019 approach should be able to clearly\ndistinguish between actors who exploit corruption for illegal gains and\npeople\u2019s business actors who are often victims of a complicated and\nexpensive system.<\/p>\n
He highlighted that tobacco-producing areas like Madura cannot be\nviewed only from the enforcement side but must be seen in a broader\nsocio-economic context. In such regions, the people\u2019s cigarette industry\nis not just about factories but also about the fate of tobacco farmers,\nrolling workers, distribution workers, small traders, and a long local\neconomic ecosystem.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf the handling is not careful, those hit will not just be business\nowners. Those hit will be tobacco farmers, labourers, small families,\nand regions that have long depended their economic pulse on tobacco. The\nKPK must view this case not only as a legal matter but also as a\npeople\u2019s economic issue,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
According to Gus Lilur, the state must be able to turn this\nprosecution momentum into a path to reform the excise system and\ncigarette trade more fairly. Cleaning up corrupt practices in the\nregulatory body is important, but that reform must be accompanied by\nprotection for the legal industry growing from the bottom.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo not let the strong escape while the small collapse. Do not let\nthose who have long played in power gaps remain safe, while the people\u2019s\nindustry that is just learning to be legal collapses due to fear,\nstigma, and pressure. This must be prevented,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Gus Lilur urged the KPK, the Ministry of Finance, and all\nstakeholders to view the people\u2019s cigarette industry more\nproportionately. He hopes that law enforcement in this case will achieve\ntwo things at once: cleaning up corrupt practices and strengthening the\nlegal path for the people\u2019s industry.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf the state wants to seriously curb illegal cigarettes, then the\nlegal path for the people\u2019s industry must be strengthened, not narrowed.\nIf the state wants to save revenue, then business actors who want to\ngrow compliantly must be given certainty, not made to die before\ndeveloping. Madura and other tobacco-producing areas need such justice,\u201d\nhe concluded.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/kpk-urged-to-proceed-with-caution-excise-case-must-not-kill-the-peoples-cigarette-industry-1775602279", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }