Singgih admits drop in corruption cases

Singgih admits drop in corruption cases

JAKARTA (JP): Attorney General Singgih confirmed yesterday the
decline in the number of reported corruption cases over the past
few years, but conceded it could be due to the increasingly
sophisticated mode of the practice.

Singgih, however, also pledged the government would continue
and intensify its fight against corruption.

"The number has declined... (and) the causes are many (such
as) better supervision... (better) prevention, or maybe because
of the ... increasingly sophisticated methods (such as those
committed) by multinational corporations," Singgih told reporters
after meeting with President Soeharto at Merdeka Palace
yesterday.

He cited 325 reported cases in 1994/1995 fiscal year causing a
financial loss of "Rp 1 trillion and some billions", 409 cases in
1995/1996 causing a Rp 208 billion (US$63 million) loss and 274
cases in 1996/1997 resulting in a loss of Rp 377 billion to the
state.

The huge loss in 1994/1995 was mostly due to businessman Edy
Tansil and several former Bapindo bank executives whose
fraudulent activities caused a Rp 1.3 trillion loss, Singgih
said. Tansil escaped earlier last year from the Cipinang prison
where he was serving a 20-year sentence. He is still at large.

In the 1997/1998 fiscal year, as of last September, the number
of reported corruption cases reached 234 and caused the state a
Rp 77 billion loss.

"This means, there's an average of 350 cases every year,"
Singgih said.

But he said that despite the declining trend, "we prioritize
our fight against corruption".

Singgih reported to Soeharto yesterday the result of the just
concluded meeting of inspector-generals of various state agencies
and departments. "Those inspector-generals should be told about
the way (the corruption took place) so that they understand the
vulnerable spots that need better supervision," he said.

The Hong Kong-based Political and Economic Risk Consultancy
Ltd issued earlier this year a report of its survey which named
Indonesia as the most corrupt country in Asia.

The survey involved 280 executives who were asked to grade
each country on a scale of zero to 10, with zero being the best
grade and 10 the worst. Indonesia had the worst score of more
than eight, followed by India, China, Vietnam, South Korea,
Thailand, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia, Japan, Hong Kong and
Singapore.

Indonesia established an anticorruption law in the 1970s, but
enforcement has been lax so far.

Singgih lamented the fact that it is usually difficult to
retrieve state money lost in corruption. "Once they (corruptors)
escape abroad, they usually launder the money," he said. "But
we'll keep on trying."

Another obstacle was that it usually took a long time before a
corruption case was revealed.

"It's so different with murder, it's discovered immediately,"
he said. "With corruption... (it becomes) known after there's an
audit, postaudit etcetera," he said. He said Edy Tansil's corrupt
practices between 1992 and 1993 were only discovered in 1994.

"What's important now is prevention," Singgih said. (swe/prb)