Big wigs fail test for buying degrees
Eva C. Komandjaja, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta
A former vice president, several former Cabinet ministers, some Muslim clerics and a number of retired senior police officers are among the prominent figures facing police investigation for allegedly obtaining academic titles from a suspected illegal educational institute.
A National Police spokesman said on Monday that the police were now examining the database of the U.S.-affiliated Institut Manajemen Global Indonesia (IMGI), which lists the former top officials among the approximately 5,000 people it graduated since it was established in 1997.
Most of the officials and police officers obtained the degrees, ranging from bachelor's degrees to doctorates, between 1998 and 1999, before they reached the peaks of their careers.
"We are seeking information from the Directorate General of Higher Education about the legality of the institute," police spokesman Sr. Comr. Saud Usman Nasution said.
If found guilty of using an academic title from an unregistered educational institute, a person may be sentenced to up to five years in jail or a maximum fine of Rp 500 million (US$50,500), according to the National Education Law. Those running an unlicensed institute or offering illegal academic titles face a maximum 10 years in jail.
Police have arrested nine executives and staff members of the Jakarta-based IMGI, including president director Mardiana and program directors Harris Robert and Luke Comay.
Mardiana's lawyer Solihin said he had submitted the names of 47 IMGI graduates to the police for verification.
Solihin said the graduates received their awards from other putative universities that collaborated with IMGI, such as the American World University (AWU), the Northern California Global University (NCGU), the Senior University (SU) and an institute called the Jakarta International Management Studies (JIMS).
None of these so-called universities are licensed to operate in their own countries.
According to a document obtained by The Jakarta Post, the former vice president obtained a doctorate from AWU, which was conferred during a ceremony in Singapore in 2002. A former transportation minister also received a doctorate from AWU in 1998.
A former home minister obtained his Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from JIMS in 1998 and later obtained a doctorate from NCGU in 1999, while a former state minister for women's empowerment received her doctorate from NCGU in 2002, which was conferred during a graduation ceremony at the Hotel Indonesia.
Around 15 active and former senior police officers are also listed as IMGI graduates.
To obtain their degrees, the officials were theoretically required to defend their theses, although the police say they never attended a single class.
Commenting on the case, sociologist Ida Ruwaida of the University of Indonesia said academic titles were a potent symbol of status here.
She added that many government and military/police officers opted to buy academic degrees as they knew this would advance their careers.