Gen. Roesmanhadi faces query over graft
JAKARTA (JP): National Police chief Gen. Rusdihardjo said on Monday that his predecessor, Gen. Roesmanhadi, would be questioned on Tuesday over his alleged involvement in a Rp 300 billion (US$33.70 million) embezzlement of the police's 1999/2000 funds.
The funds were allocated for the renovation of police headquarters.
"He will be questioned at National Police Headquarters," Rusdihardjo told reporters on Monday following a meeting on corruption at law enforcement institutions with Attorney General Marzuki Darusman at the latter's office.
"(Former National Police chief's assistant for planning) Insp. Gen. Adang Daradjatun and (chief of the treasury agency) Brig. Gen. Darmadji S.W. will also be questioned on the same matter."
Rusdihardjo said several police officers had been questioned over the matter.
National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Dadang Garnida insisted that the questioning had nothing to do with the mismanagement of the National Police's 1999/2000 Crash Fund Program.
"This is not about crash funds. It's about building funds," Dadang told The Jakarta Post over the phone.
Inspector general of the Ministry of Defense Lt. Gen. Suharto had requested intensive questioning of Roesmanhadi, Adang and Darmadji, allegedly implicated in the mismanagement of the National Police's 1999/2000 Crash Funds Program.
The request was made in a top priority report following the ministry's investigation. The report was addressed to Minister of Defense Juwono Sudarsono.
The authenticity of the report was later confirmed by Brig. Gen. Dadang after he contacted the ministry's inspectorate general.
Dated Feb. 28 this year, the report stated the investigation lasted from Feb. 3 to Feb. 18.
"The management of the crash funds program was not conducted as it should have been. Wrongdoing was committed, following pressure from the (former) chief of National Police, which was strongly supported by the (former) National Police chief's assistant for planning and chief of the treasury agency".
The report further stated that the National Police failed to properly manage the funds in a way that was publicly accountable.
The funds, it said, worth Rp 300.77 billion, were obtained "straight from members of the public who applied for their driving licenses".
"The mismanagement of the crash funds program has caused the state to suffer a loss of at least Rp 5.2 billion, due to, among other things, the purchase of 100 Timor sedans at marked up prices, as well as unpaid taxes worth Rp 4.1 billion at PT Catur Gatra Eka Perkasa (CGEP), PT Sarana Krismaslindho and PT Sri Rejeki Isman."
The statement referred to the National Police's purchase of Timor sedans, which were bought without invoices from car sellers PT CGEP and PT Sarana Krismaslindho.
The alleged wrongdoing was first revealed last year by PT Timor Putra National (TPN), the initial distributor of Timor sedans.
The report recommends that the Ministry of Defense instruct the current National Police chief to make efforts to compensate the state for losses of Rp 5.2 billion, caused due to the mark ups of the purchase of sedans and unpaid taxes at certain car companies.
It also instructs the National Police chief to make changes in the management of the funds and to at least apply administrative punishments to a number of high-ranking police officers who are strongly suspected of backing up corruption practices within the National Police.
Most importantly, it requested that the Ministry of Defense guide the National Police chief in restoring the names of at least six high-ranking police officers, who helped divulge the corruption within the National Police, and were reportedly punished by Roesmanhadi as a result.
The officers were identified as former logistics director Brig. Gen. Bambang Susetyo, former deputy chief of the electronic communication unit Col. De Friets, Col. Y. Ponto and Lt. Col. Djamaluddin, both former officers in the logistics division, and Maj. Aris Munandar and Capt. Kumbul, former investigators in the city police detectives unit. (ylt)