Law enforcers told to pursue graft in KPUD
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
City Councillors are urging law enforcers here to follow up on the findings of Commission A for legal and administrative affairs that the Jakarta Elections Commission (KPUD) had misused at least Rp 9.7 billion (US$1.03 million) of its 2004 budget of Rp 168.6 billion.
Commission A member Thamrin argued on Sunday that Commission A's report into alleged corruption in the KPUD had become a public document, and thus law enforcers -- prosecutors, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and police -- had to investigate it further.
"They (law enforcers) have the right to follow up any report about alleged corruption, including from the public. Therefore, they must further investigate the findings of Commission A," he told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.
According to Thamrin, who is a councillor of the National Mandate Party (PAN), law enforcers did not need to wait until City Council leaders issue a formal report on the alleged corruption.
In its report issued on May 2, Commission A, which probed suspected corruption practices in KPUD Jakarta, said that the election commission had marked up the prices of electoral staff vests resulting in state losses reaching Rp 9.7 billion. It also suggested that KPUD members had failed to pay income and value- added taxes amounting to Rp 4.2 billion.
The marks-up were found in the purchase of 180,000 vests for KPUD electoral staff that cost Rp 12 billion, meaning that each vest cost around Rp 66,700, far higher than the market price of Rp 25,000.
In 2004, KPUD received Rp 168.6 billion from the city budget to organize one legislative election and two presidential elections. It also received another Rp 5.5 billion in funds from the state budget. This year, the city allocated Rp 3.5 billion for KPUD operational costs.
Apart from distributing its report to journalists, Commission A also submitted it to the Council's leaders to be approved as a Council document. The Council's leaders are scheduled to issue a recommendation on the case on Monday.
Several councillors, however, feared that the Council's leaders would reduce the case to a matter of common 'irregularities', meaning it would only be investigated by the City Audit Agency (Bawasda), whose credibility has frequently been questioned.
Sharing Thamrin's opinion, Muhammad Arifin of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) also expressed the hope that law enforcers would immediately investigate the case to disclose alleged embezzlement in the election commission.
"Our findings can be used as initial evidence for further investigation by law enforcers. Therefore, there are strong reasons for them to follow up on the case," Arifin, who is also a Commission A member, told the Post.
According to Arifin, the Council's leaders should not only hand over the Council's recommendation to Bawasda, but also to other relevant agencies like the police, prosecutions office, KPK, and also the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK).
"As a political institution, we do not have right to investigate the case, therefore, we must hand over our findings to relevant agencies," he said.