Rachman rotates chief prosecutors in regions

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.