Knowing Existence Is The Reason The KPK Did Not Make Uncle Birin A Fugitive

JAKARTA - The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has not included Sahbirin Noor or Uncle Birin in the wanted list (DPO).

This step is said to be the last option because investigators know a number of locations that the Governor of South Kalimantan may have visited.

"The information I got, investigators still have options for the location information in which the person concerned can be found," said KPK spokesman Tessa Mahardika to reporters quoted on Saturday, November 9.

In addition, Tessa said that her institution believed Uncle Birin was still in the country. This is because he has been prevented from leaving the country by the Directorate General of Immigration after a request from the KPK.

This request was sent after Uncle Birin was named a suspect in the alleged bribery. "So we still have confidence that the person concerned is domestic, not abroad," he said.

The spokesman with the investigator's background said that naming a suspect as a fugitive could not be arbitrary. "Generally, the DPO was issued after all options had been taken and no one else could, no information of all kinds," said Tessa.

"But the information we got still has information that we also cannot openly convey here, for investigators to come and look for the whereabouts of the person concerned," he continued.

Previously reported, the Governor of South Kalimantan, Sahbirin Noor or Uncle Birin, was unknown after being named a suspect in alleged bribery. This determination was made after the KPK conducted a hand arrest operation (OTT) on Sunday, October 6.

This condition made the KPK asked to immediately include Uncle Birin in the wanted list (DPO).

"The KPK must include Uncle Birin in the DPO. Why? Because until now his whereabouts are unknown," said UGM Center for Anti-Corruption Studies (Pukat) researcher Zaenur Rohman to reporters quoted on Friday, November 8.

Zaenur said that Uncle Birin's unclear whereabouts interfered with the ongoing legal process. "Why? Because until now his whereabouts are unknown. Even though a suspect must be examined, must be questioned and so on to expedite the investigation process," he said.

"In fact, the tradition at the KPK should have been detained. Well, its whereabouts are unknown," continued Zaenur.