House Member Tells Forestry Minister: Gratuity Returns Must Go Through KPK
A member of the House of Representatives’ Commission IV, Firman Soebagyo, has criticised the action of Forestry Minister Raja Juli, who returned an envelope suspected of being a gratuity to Kuantan Singingi District Head Suhardiman Amby without going through the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). Firman stressed that the procedure for returning gratuities is regulated in the Corruption Eradication Law.
“The correct procedure for returning a gratuity is to the KPK, not to the giver. This is to ensure transparency and accountability. Returning it to the giver is not recognised in the Corruption Law and could actually create new legal problems,” the Golkar Party politician said in a written statement on Monday, 6 July 2026.
Firman explained that Articles 12B and 12C of Law Number 20 of 2001 concerning the Eradication of Corruption require every state official who receives a gratuity to report it to the KPK no later than 30 working days after receipt. He urged Raja Juli to immediately provide an official explanation to the public regarding the chronology of the alleged gratuity. He also requested that the envelope received by the Indonesian Solidarity Party politician be immediately reported and handed over to the KPK.
“Reporting to the KPK within 30 days is a form of legal protection for every state official,” said the Deputy Chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Firman stated that Commission IV respects the principle of presumption of innocence. However, an alleged gratuity involving a state official is a serious matter that needs to be scrutinised and monitored by the House.
Commission IV, Firman said, will carry out its oversight function by requesting an explanation from the Ministry of Forestry and coordinating with the KPK to ensure the entire process proceeds according to legal corridors. He reminded all officials to maintain integrity in the forestry sector because the ministry manages highly strategic natural resources. “Commission IV supports corruption prevention efforts through strengthening the gratuity reporting system, compliance with the State Officials’ Wealth Report (LHKPN), and improving licensing governance in the forestry sector,” he said.
The KPK has issued a similar statement regarding Raja Juli’s actions. The KPK stressed that reporting suspected gratuities is an obligation for every state official as stipulated in the legislation. “Yes, it should be the awareness of the state official concerned,” said Acting Director of Investigation at the KPK, Achmad Taufik Husein, at the KPK’s Merah Putih Building in Jakarta on Saturday, 4 July 2026.
The statement was made after Raja Juli held a press conference at the Ministry of Forestry. During the conference, Raja Juli admitted that Kuantan Singingi District Head Suhardiman Amby left an envelope behind after a meeting on 2 June 2026. He claimed he only became aware of the envelope after Suhardiman had left the meeting room. Raja Juli then ordered his aide to return the envelope on 12 June 2026, 17 days before the KPK conducted a sting operation.
Nevertheless, Taufik stressed that returning the envelope does not automatically eliminate the criminal element. Investigators will still assess the position of the return within the construction of the alleged bribery case related to the processing of a recommendation for the release of limited production forest areas (HPT). “The return does not erase the criminal act,” he said.