Is There Really A Corruption Case That Stagnates At The KPK?

JAKARTA - Deputy Chairman of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), Laode M Syarif, did not know that there was a corruption case that was said to have stalled and was not resolved by the anti-corruption agency. The KPK plans to invite Mahfud MD to discuss together what case the Menkopolhukam meant.

"From what the Menkopolhukam conveyed at one of the events open to the public yesterday, we do not yet know what case this is. But please come to the KPK if there is anything that needs to be known to handle it," Syarif said when contacted by reporters in Jakarta, Tuesday, November 12, 2019.

According to him, so far there have been two cases that have caught the attention of President Joko Widodo and other parties. However, he did not want to explain further whether these two cases were reported by President Joko Widodo as previously claimed by Mahfud MD.

The two cases Syarif referred to are the case of the purchase of the AW-101 Helicopter and the case of Petral. According to him, this case is quite difficult to handle, so it takes a long time to resolve.

For the case of the purchase of the AW-101 Helicopter, this anti-graft agency said it had handled one suspect from the private sector. Meanwhile, the TNI POM, said Syarif, had already handled suspects with military backgrounds.

"The KPK is waiting for the results of the audit of state financial losses that are being calculated by BPK. So this case really depends on the openness and seriousness of the TNI. The private sector has been or is being handled by the KPK," he said.

As for the Petral case, this anti-graft agency said the investigation process was still being carried out and had already named a suspect. It's just that the investigation process is considered to be experiencing difficulties because the KPK has to carry out cross-border evidence. So, it needs strong international cooperation.

"It should be said that this case involves several countries, namely Indonesia, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, Singapore and the British Virgin Island. Of these countries, unfortunately only two countries are willing to help while the other two countries are not cooperative," said Syarif.

Apart from tracing cross-border evidence, Syarif also said that the case involved a number of shell companies in several countries, such as the British Virgin Island.

"More than that it needs to be understood, the handling of a corruption case must of course be based on evidence and the ability to obtain evidence is strongly influenced by the authority given by the law and the cooperative attitude of the parties summoned by the KPK," he concluded.

Previously, the Menkopolhukam Mahfud MD said that there were cases of corruption that had been reported by President Jokowi, but these were stuck and were not resolved. This was conveyed by Jokowi when Mahfud was just appointed as Menkopolhukam.

"The president showed, submitting a report to the KPK, this, this, this but not revealed. Try now to strengthen it, the prosecutor's office, the police. So that we will return to normal," Mahfud said on Monday, November 11.