Wealth commission candidates named

Wealth commission candidates named

JAKARTA (JP): The House of Representatives on Thursday
announced a lineup of 204 candidates for a 45-member commission
to audit the wealth of state officials.

The House Commission II for home and legal affairs said that
the announcement was aimed at subjecting the 204 names to public
scrutiny.

Antara reported that among the candidates were the Indonesian
Corruption Watch's Teten Masduki, human rights activists Bambang
Widjojanto, Zoemrotin K.S. and former National Commission on
Human Rights member Baharuddin Lopa, who is currently the
Indonesian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia.

Also on the list are lawyer Denny Kailimang, former justice
Bismar Siregar, activist Eggy Sudjana, lawyer Luhut Pangaribuan
and Maj. Gen. Saurip Kadi, former territorial assistant to Army
chief of staff.

House Speaker Akbar Tandjung said earlier this year that the
commission would have one chairman, four deputy chairmen and 40
members tasked with auditing officials from state institutions
and state-owned companies.

The 1999 Law on Clean Governance stipulates the establishment
of an independent commission with at least 25 members to audit
the wealth of state officials. The commission should be approved
by the House before being sworn in by the president.

Observers and legislators have said that high moral integrity
and skill in accountancy and legal matters were important
criteria for selection.

The commission will have four subcommissions with 10 members
each. The subcommissions will be charged with handling individual
duties related to the audit.

The announcement of these 204 names came as the government
said on Wednesday that the establishment of the wealth commission
was one of the preconditions set to obtain the next loan
disbursement from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). (byg)