Hamid admits receiving funds outside monthly salary at KPU
Hamid admits receiving funds outside monthly salary at KPU
Rendi A. Witular and Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Justice minister and former General Elections Commission (KPU)
member Hamid Awaluddin admitted on Thursday receiving a large
amount of money from the commission outside his monthly salary.
Other KPU members and staffers enjoyed the same benefits, he
said, but added that he did not know whether the money they
received was derived from funds collected by partner firms
supplying election materials as kickbacks.
Hamid was responding to accusations by KPU treasurer Hamdani
Amin that the current minister of justice and human rights and
other KPU members had each received some US$105,000 from the
partner companies.
However, Hamid quickly explained that the money he received
was in the form of an honorarium paid for his participation in
specific working groups or other activities related to the
general elections.
"For example, like the preparations for political party
campaigns, vote counting or public information campaigns for the
elections," he said.
Such payments, he added, were traceable and could be accounted
for because all the KPU members and staffers received similar
payments from the commission's treasurer.
Asked if he knew whether the funds were disbursed legally,
Hamid said he did not know, but asserted that the disbursement of
the funds could be accounted for.
"And no, the total amount did not reach billions, or even
hundreds of millions. That's an exaggeration. The amount varied
depending on the length and intensity of the work. Sometimes I
got Rp 590,000, Rp 700,000, Rp 1.2 million, or Rp 2 million," he
said.
Other KPU members also reiterated on Thursday their innocence
in the disbursement of the funds, although several officials from
the KPU secretary-general's office have said otherwise.
Part of the funds was believed to have been used by KPU member
Mulyana W. Kusumah to bribe a state auditor to alter audit
results involving trillions of rupiah spent for last year's
legislative election.
Similarly, KPU chief Nazaruddin Sjamsuddin again denied any
wrongdoing in the bribery case, saying the money must have been
from Mulyana's own pocket and thus had never been discussed in
any KPU meeting as claimed by Hamdani.
"I can't prohibit my subordinates from doing something or from
not doing something. Yes, I heard about a plan to bribe BPK
auditors, but I did not hear it explicitly. It is impossible that
I would order one of my members to commit a crime in which I
didn't have any kind of interest," Nazaruddin said.
He also refused to say if he had any knowledge of tactical
funds or compensation funds received from KPU suppliers.
"If we had not discussed the funds, how could I know? If the
suppliers personally gave such compensation funds to KPU members,
how would I know? We never discussed it in KPU plenary meetings,"
Nazaruddin said.
Other members, Daan Dimara and Anas Urbaningrum, also refuted
the accusations.
Speaking to journalists after being questioned by the
Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), Anas said he was quizzed
in connection with his position as a KPU member and his role in
last year's general elections.
During the questioning, Anas submitted his latest wealth
report to the KPK, but refused to elaborate.
Also quizzed on Thursday were financial bureau deputy head N.
Dentjik, election execution technical bureau head Maksum Wijaya
Kusuma, and two staffers in the provision of ballot boxes,
Suparno and Asrudi Tjriono.