Rp 10b vanishes from Donggala budget<\/p>\n
Ruslan Sangadji, Donggala, Central Sulawesi<\/p>\n
A top government official here has said that the Donggala
\nSupervisory Board is investigating corruption allegations
\ninvolving Rp 10 billion (US$1.1 million) that implicate former
\nDonggala regent Nabi Bidja.<\/p>\n
\"I have received a report that the 2003 budget has been
\nmisused and that the board is investigating it,\" said Donggala
\nRegent Adam Ardjad Lamarauna.<\/p>\n
The 2003 budget in the regency was Rp 285 billion, and in his
\naccountability speech in April this year, then regent Nabi Bidja
\nsaid there was Rp 10 billion left over from the budget.<\/p>\n
However, when the new administration under new Regent Adam
\nArdjad came to power recently, it could not find the leftover
\nfunds mentioned by his predecessor. \"I don't know what the funds
\nwere used for,\" he said recently.<\/p>\n
He even claimed that he immediately summoned every high-
\nranking regental official and agency head to inquire about the
\nmatter. However, they said that they had no knowledge about the
\nfunds.<\/p>\n
Speaker of Donggala legislature Ridwan Yalidjama said on
\nSaturday that he had received reports on the budget leakage, but
\nonly an amount of less than Rp 8 billion. \"I cannot comment
\nfurther because I have no data on it and there has yet to be an
\nofficial report to the council,\" he said.<\/p>\n
When asked whether the funds were used for campaigning in the
\n2003 regental elections for the reelection of Nabi Bidja, he said
\nthat he knew nothing about it. \"I don't know. I swear by God, I
\ndon't know,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He said that the regent had the authority to disburse money
\nfrom the treasury directly, but the council had to be informed
\nand there had to be an accountability report on the disbursement
\nof budget funds. \"That's how the mechanism works. If money is,
\nfor instance, borrowed to finance physical development, the
\ncouncil must know about it. But in this case, we received no
\nreport,\" he claimed.<\/p>\n
To prove that there was an indication of Rp 10 billion budget
\nmisuse, the Donggala legislative council demanded Regent Adam
\nArdjad investigate the case thoroughly to avoid defamatory
\naccusations being made.<\/p>\n
When asked for confirmation, head of the Donggala Supervisory
\nBoard Kasmuddin was reluctant to make any further comment. He
\nmerely said that he had received reports on the leakage and was
\nstill studying them. \"Just ask the regent,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Nabi Bidja, who was interviewed at his residence in West
\nPalu,said that he knew nothing about the issue. \"It's not true. I
\nwouldn't inflict a financial loss on my own region,\" he told The
\nJakarta Post on Friday.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/rp-10b-vanishes-from-donggala-budget-1447893297",
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