Mayor implicated in graft<\/p>\n
Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post\/Jakarta<\/p>\n
After three sessions of questioning, the Attorney General's
\nOffice said on Friday it was close to naming East Jakarta mayor
\nKoesnan A. Halim a suspect in a toll road scam.<\/p>\n
Office spokesman Kemas Yahya Rahman said as the head of the
\ncommittee for payment of compensation for residents whose land
\nwas affected by the eight-kilometer Cikunir toll road project,
\nKoesnan was held responsible for unpaid compensation amounting to
\nRp 74 billion (US$8 million).<\/p>\n
"The mayor surely would know the payment process and why the
\nland owners have not received the compensation," said Kemas.<\/p>\n
He said the state had paid the compensation fund for 400
\nhectares of land in Ceger, Bambu Apus and Taman Mini Indonesia
\nIndah areas in East Jakarta which was acquired for the road which
\nlinks Taman Mini and Cikunir, Bekasi.<\/p>\n
The residents have claimed they did not receive compensation
\nalthough the project was completed recently.<\/p>\n
"The payment committee didn't give the money directly to the
\nland owners. Instead, they paid the money through a middleman,
\nwho claimed to represent the land owners. We are suspicious the
\ncommittee was in cahoots with the broker," said Kemas.<\/p>\n
He refused to identify the middleman, but said he had been
\nnamed a suspect.<\/p>\n
According to the law, compensation should be given only to
\npeople who can produce land ownership documents.<\/p>\n
Previously, state prosecutors had declared four officials of
\nthe state toll road operator PT Jasa Marga, including Daud
\nJatmiko, deputy head of the payment committee, suspects.<\/p>\n
The investigation began last year, with prosecutors having
\nquestioned 30 witnesses.<\/p>\n
"We found sufficient evidence during our investigation to
\nconclude that the four had taken some of the compensation money,"
\nsaid Kemas.<\/p>\n
The toll road project cost the state Rp 370 billion.<\/p>\n
Kemas said several other officials from the East Jakarta
\nmunicipal administration and the contractor may also be declared
\nsuspects in the case.<\/p>\n
The prosecutors are now questioning the head of East Jakarta
\nLand Agency as a witness.<\/p>\n
Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW) has blamed the rampant
\ncorruption in the toll road projects for the increase in toll
\nfees.<\/p>\n
An ICW inquiry found that billions of rupiah in state funds in
\n21 toll road construction projects in Jakarta and West Java had
\nbeen misused. It said the state had lost at least Rp 12.5 billion
\nin the construction of Jakarta-Tangerang toll road from 1996 to
\n1997, while the Cawang-Cibitung toll road construction had caused
\nRp 57.9 billion in state losses in 1998.<\/p>",
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