Court's poor image due to individuals, says Sarwata

JAKARTA (JP): Chief Justice Sarwata blamed the Supreme Court's poor image this past year on, among other things, poor teamwork and individual justices whose activities eclipsed those of the institution.

Addressing the press after a meeting with President Soeharto at the presidential residence on Jalan Cendana yesterday, Sarwata said the Supreme Court had just evaluated and launched efforts to consolidate, and had found some flaws in its working mechanisms.

"In our working procedures, it seems that individual roles have received more emphasis (than those of the institution)," he said. "In addition, in the past, the Court has not displayed solid teamwork."

Sarwata did not refer to specific justices. However, the Court underwent trouble earlier this year when Deputy Chief Justice for General Crimes Adi Andojo blew the whistle on the alleged bribery of several senior justices' involving Rp. 1.4 billion (US$600,000).

The justices were said to have been paid to acquit a defendant in a document fraud case involving the Gandhi Memorial School.

The court later set up an investigation team, led by Sarwata who was then deputy chief justice for military tribunal affairs. The team negated Adi's accusation, announcing no wrongdoing had been committed and what had happened was merely a 'procedural error' on the part of the justices.

The team's result did not satisfy Adi Andojo nor most of the public. Before the team's verdict had been announced, the press had published a confidential letter from Justice Adi to Soerjono, Sarwata's predecessor, revealing the irregularities he said marked the Gandhi Memorial School case.

Sarwata, however, said yesterday that Justice Adi had been involved all along in the efforts to consolidate the institution, which began immediately after his appointment as chief justice in November.

"(Adi's) written recommendations were accepted into the consolidation program," he said.

The chief justice also said the consolidation drive has resulted in the establishment of a five-principle policy called Panca Bakti Mahkamah Agung.

The policy includes efforts to improve discipline, to revitalize, some restructuring and reorganization, and efforts to improve the Court's function. Sarwata called the last "refunctionalization".

Sarwata said with the policy, the Court hoped to be able to put its house in order so that working spirits at the court would lift.

Sarwata said the Supreme Court was aware of the pile of unfinished cases, ranging from criminal to state administration cases.

The Court has been struggling for years to rid itself of the backlog of cases. Sarwata said yesterday there were 16,599 cases waiting to be heard.

He vowed yesterday that from now the Court would provide justice seekers with the best service. Among efforts to be launched to meet this promise is the introduction of computerized information programs to help justice seekers.

Those who visit the Supreme Court will be able to seek information, for instance, on how far the institute has processed their cases. Computers will be installed so justice seekers will be able to seek the relevant information by themselves.

Another innovation to be introduced was what Sarwata called the "audio computer," which would serve justice seekers who live far from the Supreme Court.

"A justice seeker who wants to know about his case can call certain numbers, give the case registration number, and computerized telephone operators will inform him how far his case has been processed."

Sarwata hoped to have the innovations in place before 2000.

Asked if the new programs would help revive the Supreme Court's image as "the last bastion of justice," Sarwata replied: "God willing, with hard work we can do it." (36)