Rachman rotates chief prosecutors in regions

Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Attorney General M.A. Rachman rotated on Monday 10 provincial chief prosecutors across the country and swore in 16 new officials at the Attorney General's Office, including two deputies and three directors.

Office spokesman Kemas Yahya Rahman was appointed Banten chief prosecutor, replacing Farchan Sunyoto Mukadi, who was appointed Jambi chief prosecutor. Meanwhile, former Jambi chief prosecutor Barman Zahid was appointed Bali chief prosecutor, replacing I Ketut Yona, who was promoted to Deputy Attorney General.

Southeast Sulawesi chief prosecutor Antasari Azhar was appointed West Sumatra chief prosecutor, replacing Muchtar Arifin, who was promoted to Deputy Attorney General of Intelligence.

Assistant to Deputy Attorney General of Intelligence Togar R. Hutabarat was promoted to West Kalimantan chief prosecutor, replacing Muzammi Merah Hakim, who is now a director at the Attorney General's Office.

Newly appointed chief prosecutors are: Moh. Rusdi Taher to Bengkulu, Zainal Arifin to West Nusa Tenggara, Ketut Widhiana Sulatra to North Maluku, I Wayan Pasek Suartha to South Sulawesi and Ichsan Kawanto to Gorontalo.

Kemas, the outgoing Attorney General's spokesman, said the rotations were routine.

"Several officers retired so we had to fill the vacant positions. We also aimed to boost the performance of our office through these rotations," said Kemas.

He dismissed suggestions the rotations were an effort to grant loyal officials higher positions or to bolster Rahman's position prior to the inauguration of the new president on Oct. 20.

"It is not true that we were inaugurated because of political motives. These are just periodical rotations to rejuvenate the office with new spirit," said Kemas.

Many have pointed to Rahman as the weakest point in President Megawati's Cabinet and its fight against widespread corruption, which contributed to Megawati's expected loss in the Sept. 20 election runoff.

Rahman has been accused of failing to report his wealth to the now-defunct Public Servants' Wealth Audit Commission, including a house he allegedly acquired using state money.

Despite the emergence of the case, Megawati insisted on not replacing Rahman, and several Attorney General's officials continued to support him.

Police have been investigating the case since last year, but without any sign of progress. Police say they are still gathering evidence.