Suspect named in alleged corruption in land swap deal
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The Attorney General's Office (AGO) has named Usman Ismail, president director of PT Tata Disantara, a suspect of alleged corruption in the land swap deal involving SMP 56 state junior high school.
The deal, which swapped the Melawai, South Jakarta, school with two other property in South Jakarta, is thought to have caused Rp 12.4 billion (US$1.33 million) in state losses.
"So far, he is the only suspect in the case, since another individual who knew well about the case has passed away," Deputy Attorney General for intelligence Basrief Arief said on Friday, referring to a former official of the now defunct Jakarta Office of the Ministry of National Education.
PT Tata Disantara is a subsidiary of the Latief Corporation, owned by former manpower minister Abdul Latief.
The Attorney General's Office had announced earlier that it had found indications of corruption in the land swap deal.
Meanwhile, the last 53 students of SMP 56 gave up their prolonged fight to keep their school on Dec. 20, having agreed to relocate to nearby SMP 13 on Jl. Tirtayasa, South Jakarta, under pressure from the city.
The administration is set to hand over the school to Tata to fulfill its part in the deal.
In the 2000 land swap deal, Tata exchanged its assets in Bintaro and Jeruk Purut, both in South Jakarta, with the Melawai property, which belonged to the Jakarta Office of the Ministry of National Education.
Basrief said the Attorney General's Office had discovered irregularities concerning possible state losses in a preliminary investigation into the deal, and which could become the legal basis for the charges.
"According to the prevailing regulation, a land swap involving state assets of at least Rp 10 billion must be granted special permission from the president. The parties in this case failed to provide the required permission," he said.
In addition, he said, Tata was directly appointed by the Jakarta Office of the Ministry of National Education, disregarding a regulation stipulating that a swap must be made via an open tender with at least five bidders.
Furthermore, the land swap agreement stated that the Bintaro property -- currently the site of SMU 87 state high school -- was 4,170 square meters, but the actual area of the land is only 3,435 sqm.
The 735 sqm difference, at an estimated price of Rp 800,000 per sqm, has thus caused a potential loss of Rp 588 million to the state.
The Attorney General's Office also found a Rp 900 million discrepancy in the procurement of office equipment as submitted in the Rp 1.4 billion swap deal. According to the original list drawn up by the SMU 87 headmaster, the expenditure stood at Rp 407.99 million.
Asked if the case might implicate Abdul Latief, Basrief replied: "If we find any evidence (of Latief's involvement), why shouldn't it?"