BRR task force gets 85 public reports on alleged graft

Nani Afrida, The Jakarta Post, Banda Aceh

Since its establishment a month ago, a task force assigned to monitor graft at the Aceh Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Body (BRR) has received 85 public reports on alleged graft at the body.

Most of the cases are related to alleged corruption committed during the tender process that involved private companies, said the acting chairman of the Antigraft Task Force with the BRR, Kevin Evans. "We received any reports on alleged graft, be they involving big or small amounts of money -- be they big or small cases," said Evans on Wednesday.

Evans said the task force had followed up quickly any reports on alleged graft cases and, so far, it had settled 37 public cases.

After the 37 reports were investigated no indications of graft were found. If any mistakes were made on the part of the BRR employees, these were merely administrative mistakes, he said.

Evans said the BRR had reprimanded the employees responsible for the administrative errors.

The task force's acting chairman also said the task force had uncovered another 10 alleged graft cases, which had been handed over to the respective divisions of the BRR for follow-up.

"The investigations into the remaining 38 public reports are underway," said Evans.

He said it was encouraging that in 70 of the total 85 public reports filed with the task force, the people filing the reports provided their true identity. This meant that public trust over the task force was high.

The task force was established on Sept. 13 to monitor alleged corruption at the BRR. The task force's establishment was considered important as donor countries reserved little faith in the country's efforts to fight graft. The establishment was also crucial in a sense that the BRR managed an enormous amount of money donated by the international community and by proposing the task force's establishment, the donor countries saw that it was necessary to make sure the money was not corrupted.

The task force is provided with operational funds amounting to Rp 1 billion (US$100,000) a year.

The BRR is an agency assigned to carry out reconstruction and rehabilitation work in Aceh province following the Dec. 26 tsunami catastrophe. The tsunami left some 170,000 people dead or missing and 500,000 others homeless.