Noble task of attorney general<\/p>\n
From Media Indonesia<\/p>\n
As a layman with no connections to any political parties, I
\nfelt sad and greatly concerned upon hearing the cynical remarks
\nmade in the mass media by the deputy chairman of Commission II of
\nthe House of Representatives (DPR) on the attorney general's move
\nto interrogate a number of political figures for alleged
\ncorruption. My reasons to feel that way are as follows:<\/p>\n
1. Commission II of the House showed its one-sidedness and
\nlack of wisdom when it unfavorably considered the attorney
\ngeneral as serving as a tool of the executive institution. This
\nunfavorable comment does not support the attorney general's steps
\nand will only intensify the tension among the disputing political
\nelite.<\/p>\n
2. The attorney general is also taking measures to interrogate
\na number of business magnates close to the President. So he is
\nnot after only political figures. Baharuddin Lopa was installed
\nin June 2001 and has started to examine the cases that his
\npredecessors failed to deal with. His step is praiseworthy
\nalthough in the eyes of the community, the government's attempt
\nto eradicate corruption is a bit too late.<\/p>\n
3. The cynical remarks made by deputy chairman of Commission
\nII of the House clearly show the public that the House is only
\nconcerned with the political interests of a particular group,
\npurportedly claiming to act on behalf of the people. This
\nnegative perception of the legislative Assembly has taken hold in
\nthe mind-set of the people in general. It will be very difficult
\nto shake off this perception unless the House makes several moves
\nthat, according to the public, represent their interests.<\/p>\n
4. It is the law, not politics, that all national components,
\nincluding national leaders, must stick to if the final goal is to
\nestablish a just and prosperous Indonesia. Prosperity is possible
\nonly if the law and justice are served.<\/p>\n
5. The use of a legal aspect in politics is the right step to
\ntake and it is coupled with a high degree of morality. It is,
\ntherefore, wrong to say that it is tantamount to relegating the
\nlaw as a mere tool of the executive power.<\/p>\n
6. It is erroneous to uphold a political process without
\nheeding the legal substance because the resulting political
\nprocess will not come up with the best solution and will instead
\nbecome a source of problems today and in the future.<\/p>\n
Take the President's alleged involvement in Bruneigate and
\nBulogate. The then attorney general, Marzuki Darusman, stated
\nthat the President was not involved in them. However, the
\npolitical process toward the convening of the plenary session of
\nthe People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) specially intended to
\nask the President to submit his accountability report in relation
\nto these two scams. Is this political process worth imitating by
\nthe young generation, the future breed of our leaders? I hope all
\nlegislators in the House will, in all their nobleness of purpose
\nand clarity of mind, be able to forget their egotism for a while
\nand contemplate upon this crucial matter, which is expected to
\ngenerate side effects on the generation of future leaders.<\/p>\n
I also hope that all the political elite will support the
\nattorney general's efforts to investigate the corruption cases,
\nwhich have brought untold sufferings to the people and inflicted
\nhuge losses to the state.<\/p>\n
The public believes that Baharuddin Lopa, known as a
\nstraightforward, honest and fair person, is really serious in his
\npursuit to enforce the law and ensure that major corruption cases
\nwill be brought to court.<\/p>\n
May God bestow upon Baharuddin Lopa and his family happiness
\nand a smooth performance at his job. If he is successful in
\nenforcing the legal supremacy in Indonesia, his name will go down
\nin world history as the one resembling the famous Judge Pao in
\nChinese films.<\/p>\n
KATHLEEN H. HORMAN<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/noble-task-of-attorney-general-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }