KPUD members summoned over alleged graft<\/p>\n
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The City Council is now looking into alleged embezzlement by
\nother members of the Jakarta Elections Commission (KPUD) in 2004,
\nless than two weeks after the arrest of General Elections
\nCommission (KPU) member Mulyana W. Kusuma for alleged bribery.<\/p>\n
\"We will summon KPUD members on Wednesday. We will ask them to
\nprovide a detailed report on its spending financed by the city
\nbudget,\" said member of the council's commission A for legal and
\nadministrative affairs, Rois Hadayana Syaugie, on Monday.<\/p>\n
Rois questioned a Rp 170 million (US$18,888) annual rental fee
\nfor a house used for the KPUD Secretariat in Kepulauan Seribu
\nregency.<\/p>\n
\"I don't think that there is a house in the regency that has a
\nrental fee reaching Rp 170 million a year,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The city administration allocated Rp 140 billion for
\nprovincial and regional to organize three elections in 2004. This
\nyear, it set aside another Rp 3.24 billion for the operational
\ncosts of the KPUDs.<\/p>\n
Corruption allegations involving KPU and KPUD members were
\nwidespread during the 2004 elections, especially regarding the
\nprocurement of election materials. The arrest of Mulyana last
\nweek was the first sign of a serious investigation into the
\nallegations.<\/p>\n
Mulyana, who is now detained at the Salemba Penitentiary in
\nCentral Jakarta, has denied a charge of trying to bribe a State
\nAudit Office Official with Rp 300 million.<\/p>\n
KPU Jakarta chairman Muhammad Taufik, meanwhile, refused to
\ncomment on the alleged embezzlements in the city before he had
\nthe results of an internal investigation.<\/p>\n
A Development and Finance Comptroller (BPKP) auditor,
\nsaid earlier that his office had found a number of fake documents
\nregarding procurements of goods by the KPUD Kepulauan Seribu
\nregency last year.<\/p>\n
However, the auditor refused to go into further detail because the
\nfinding had not yet been reported to the Corruption Eradication
\nCommission (KPK), which recently arrested Mulyana.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, City Audit Agency (Bawasda) head Firman Hutajulu
\nadmitted his agency had yet not audited any KPUDs in the capital.<\/p>\n
Bawasda was waiting for the result of the BPK's audit first,
\nFirman said.<\/p>\n
He said his office was not investigating the KPUDs because the
\nBPKP and the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) were already on the case.<\/p>\n
\"It is a matter of auditing ethics. If an auditing body has
\nconducted an investigation to certain agency, another body should
\nnot do the same thing,\" he said.<\/p>\n
According to Firman, Bawasda would only follow up the case if
\nit received an order from Governor Sutiyoso.<\/p>\n
\"Usually, Governor Sutiyoso gets copies of auditing reports.
\nIf there is something wrong, the governor will order Bawasda to
\nfollow up their (BPK and BPKP) findings,\" Firman said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Rois, who is a councilor of the Prosperous Justice
\nParty, criticized Bawasda, which, he said, did not actively
\nfollow up any reports of irregularities from the public and other
\nagencies.<\/p>\n
This was a clear case of the institution ignoring the reason
\nfor its creation -- to audit the work of agencies under the city
\nadministration that received public money, he said.<\/p>\n
\"We are disappointed with Bawasda because there have been no
\nconcrete actions to probe alleged embezzlements in the city,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/kpud-members-summoned-over-alleged-graft-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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