BPK lists AGO among top abusers
BPK lists AGO among top abusers
Dadan Wijaksana, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta
The Attorney General's Office (AGO) -- the state body
supposedly in the frontline in the fight against corruption --
topped the list of state institutions that have committed
"irregularities" in the management of state funds, according to
the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK).
In a revelation that poses yet again another challenge for
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who is set to become the nation's sixth
president, BPK told a House plenary session that the Attorney
General's Office has outdone other state agencies with their
inefficiency in spending management in the 2003 fiscal year.
"The highest percentage (of irregularities) was found in the
Attorney General's Office, covering about 51.8 percent of the
total audited funds of Rp 618.7 billion, which is about Rp 320.5
billion," BPK chairman Satrio B. Joedono said.
The percentage was higher than the average rate of
irregularities conducted by state agencies during the same
period, which stood at around 26.5 percent, Satrio added.
He was conveying the results of BPK's audit before the House
members on the use of the state budget by the central and
regional governments, ministries and other state agencies, for
2002, 2003 and the first-half of the 2004 fiscal year.
The Ministry of Justice and Human Rights meanwhile, had the
lowest percentage in the same category, with irregularities
amounting to Rp 6.1 billion.
BPK did not clearly define irregularities -- they could mean
outright losses, or simply potential losses, or a discrepancy
between the actual use of state funds and the planned use.
Yet, it could still serve as a wake-up call for Susilo who has
repeatedly pledged to eradicate corruption -- an area many see
the incumbent President Megawati Soekarnoputri has failed to
address.
Since the reform era that began in 1998, which was marked by
the downfall then president Soeharto, pledges to eradicate the
die-hard practice in the country had been made by succeeding
administrations.
In total, Satrio said, the audit covered 377 state
institutions and firms holding total funds of Rp 1,312 trillion.
Irregularities were found in the use of Rp 37.4 trillion, or 2.8
percent of the total funds.
In another part of the report, in the category of management
of non-taxable state funds (PNBP), BPK listed the Directorate-
General for Post and Telecommunications at the Ministry of
Communication as the highest state fund-abuser.
The directorate had misused 81.9 percent of the Rp 1.8
trillion PNBP fund or Rp 1.4 trillion, during the 2003 fiscal
year.
This was way above the average rate of misuse by other state
agencies, which stood at 32.2 percent.