Probing officials' wealth<\/p>\n
There is a strong demand today that the wealth of
\nofficials\/former officials should be subject to investigation
\n(for example in the case of former president Soeharto).<\/p>\n
However, there may be no legal foundation for state
\napparatuses, for example the Attorney General's Office, to simply
\ncarry out such investigations. Law No. 3\/1971 is there to be
\napplied if someone has been proved to be involved in corruption.
\nThe only way possible is to resort to the tax law, for example
\nLaw No. 10\/1994 on income tax. It is the obligation for every
\ngovernment official to send in an annual tax return to the
\nDirectorate General of Taxation (see Presidential Decree No.
\n52\/1971 on reporting of personal taxes).<\/p>\n
Based on Law No. 9\/1994 on general provisions on and procedure
\nfor taxation, the Directorate General of Taxation may request
\ninformation from anybody -- a third party -- about the data of a
\ntaxpayer. It is a criminal offense if a third party refuses to
\nprovide the information requested, regardless of the law on
\nconfidentiality (e.g.: for banking institutions).<\/p>\n
I propose that the Directorate General of Taxation and the
\nAttorney General's Office set up a joint team. All tax returns
\nsent in by government officials\/former government officials
\nsuspected of amassing wealth through corruption, collusion and
\nnepotism (KKN) must be inspected by the experts. For the sake of
\nverifying the tax returns, data must be sought from third parties
\nas long as it is related to the alleged practices of corruption,
\ncollusion and nepotism (KKN) committed by the officials.<\/p>\n
If the tax returns have been incorrectly or untruthfully
\ncompleted, an additional tax assessment may be issued to those
\ntaxpayers concerned, stating a punishment of 400 percent of the
\ntax owing (an administrative sanction). Besides this, they may
\nalso be brought to the court on criminal charges. The sentence
\nis, pursuant to the tax law, two years in prison. If it is not
\nconsidered enough, the taxpayers may be prosecuted on the basis
\nof Anticorruption Law No. 3\/1971. It is up to the Attorney
\nGeneral's Office.<\/p>\n
In the case of Soeharto, all presidential decrees\/instructions
\nindicating elements of KKN must be judicially reviewed. According
\nto the Indonesian Transparency Society, 79 presidential decrees
\ncontain elements of KKN and the abuse of presidential authority,
\nwhich is a legal violation inflicting losses to the state and
\nbenefiting certain people.<\/p>\n
We hope President Habibie's administration takes immediate
\naction, while the evidence can still be obtained. The people are
\nwaiting.<\/p>\n
SUHARSONO HADIKUSUMO<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/probing-officials-wealth-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }