National Police undergo major reshuffle in detectives corps

JAKARTA (JP): National Police chief Gen. Roesmanhadi installed on Tuesday four brigadier generals as new directors of the National Police Detective directorates of general crime, corruption, narcotics and special crime.

The reshuffle in the police detectives corps, part of a major reshuffle for middle-ranking officers at National Police Headquarters, effectively demoted the four colonels who previously held the posts.

"It's a decision of the National Police that the posts of directors should go to high-ranking officers. After all, stars should get priority," Roesmanhadi told reporters after the installation of the new directors on Tuesday morning.

"It is not that the colonels have got bad posts. They are high-level posts as well."

The new directors for the National Police directorates of general crime, corruption, narcotics and special crime are respectively Brig. Gen. Engkesman Rangkeong Hillep, Brig. Gen. Timbul Silaen, Brig. Gen. James Daniel Sitorus and Brig. Gen. Made Mangku Pastika.

Three of the former directors will serve as deputies to the new directors. Col. Made Padmanegara is Hillep's new deputy, Col. Fajar Istiono will serve under Silaen, while Col. Wilhelmus Laturette will serve under Sitorus. Col. Ismaer Dalebang has been appointed Riau Police chief.

Hillep formerly worked as a lecturer at the National Resilience Institute, Silaen was the former East Timor Police chief, Sitorus was deputy governor of the Police Academy and Pastika was the director of the National Police Detective economics division.

The economics division has officially become a part of the National Police Detectives special crime unit.

Included in the reshuffle was National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Togar Sianipar, who was replaced in his post by Brig. Gen. Erald Dotulong, former deputy to the National Police chief assistant for operational affairs.

Togar, a former member of the National Police chief's expert staff and a former Bali police chief of detectives, will move to Bali in November to take up his new post as the Bali Police chief.

In other reshuffles, Irian Jaya Deputy Police chief Brig. Gen. Ayub Sawaki was appointed the new Special Inspector at the Inspectorate General of the National Police; National Police chief of Intelligence and Security Brig. Gen. Koek Soebono was appointed new National Police chief of Intelligence; National Police deputy chief of Intelligence and Security Brig. Gen. Yohannes Wahyu was appointed the new National Police head of the Security Agency; deputy assistant of public security for the National Police chief Brig. Gen. Suprihadi Sahadi was named the National Police chief of public security and the National Police chief of On-The-Alert Unit Brig. Gen. Tarzan Tampubolon was appointed to lead the new National Police Sabhara Unit. (ylt)