Officials guilty of 'KKN' face administrative penalties
Officials guilty of 'KKN' face administrative penalties
Dadan Wijaksana, Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The preliminary debate over the draft decree on the eradication of corruption, collusion and nepotism (KKN) was completed on Wednesday but the mandatory dismissal for state officials implicated in KKN was downscaled to "administrative" punishment.
However, legislators of Commission B of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) gave assurances that the administrative penalty could include dismissal.
Despite the effort to lessen the punishment, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) faction was happy with the decision. It described the draft as an important move in the campaign against corruption.
The largest faction proposed the inclusion of dismissal, which was opposed by the second largest, Golkar, as well as the other factions.
"Overall, I consider this draft a development. We have never come this far before," Firman Jaya Daely of PDI Perjuangan told reporters.
"I found it relatively comprehensive and capable enough to speed up our efforts to combat KKN practices," said fellow PDIP legislator Erwin Singajuru.
Erwin said that penalties could be imposed on an official even if they had yet to be declared a suspect. "This is even more than we had asked for," Erwin added.
PDI Perjuangan had initially proposed that the punishment of dismissal be applied to officials who had already become a suspect in a proceeding trial.
The eagerly awaited debates, which are being carried out by the country's highest legislative body, comes at a time when one of its members is currently facing trial.
Akbar Tandjung, who is also the House of Representatives' (DPR) speaker, is currently a witness in a trial.
He has been accused of being involved in the misuse of Rp 40 billion in State Logistic Agency (Bulog) funds, which occurred during his tenure as Minister of State Secretary under then- president B.J. Habibie.
Commenting on the draft, Akbar said, "We are of the opinion that the presumption of innocence remains the foundation of our legal system. An individual is innocent unless proven guilty," he said.
Fellow Golkar member Fahmi Idris said the country should take the Sjahril Sabirin case as an example of upholding the presumption of innocent principle.
"While a suspect in a crime, Sjahril can still carry out his daily job as Governor of Bank Indonesia," Fahmi said.
The central bank governor, if proven guilty, faces a four-year jail term for his alleged involvement in the high-profile Bank Bali scam.
Main objectives of Draft Decree
* Accelerate legal proceedings on government officials, especially law enforcers and state administrators accused of involvement in KKN practices * Conduct more serious legal action in all corruption cases * Increase public participation in observing and reporting KKN practices carried out by state officials * Revoke, change or replace existing regulations to combat KKN more effectively