Calls Corruption Now Crazier Than The New Order, Mahfud MD: We Are Inherited By Waste

JAKARTA - Minister of Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Mahfud MD highlighted the problem of corruption in the country. According to him, this condition is much crazier than during the New Order era. He assessed that the current government inherited the waste problems from the past.

Initially, Mahfud mentioned his statement that went viral again regarding corruption in the increasingly widespread reform era. On this occasion, Mahfud explained the statement he made in 2017 long before he became a minister.

Even so, Mahfud emphasized that he would not withdraw his words regarding corruption in the country. Even though he has entered the ranks of the government.

"My brother said I would not rectify because the fact is that today, corruption is even crazier than the New Order era. I'm not saying it's getting bigger or what the number is, it's widespread," he said in a dialogue broadcast on UGM YouTube account, Saturday, June 5.

Mahfud said corruption in the New Order era was well coordinated, in which Suharto was directly regulated as head of state. He said no one dared to commit corruption independently at that time.

"That's what I said today is wider than the New Order era. Why is it wider? You see, during Mr. Harto's era, KKN was extraordinary. But remember, no corruption was carried out by the DPR, judges did not dare, governors, local governments, The regent didn't dare. In the past, corruption was coordinated," he explained.

Furthermore, Mahfud said that in 1993, he wrote a dissertation related to corruption in the New Order era. He said the government at that time proved to be building a network of corporatism.

"Farmers are organized, regulated here, given a share of who leads the farmers, market traders, a corporatist structure is made, corruption is organized. It is true that Mr. Harto's corruption is true. Mr. Harto is KKN. So in the MPR, Mr. Harto is the leader of KKN. In the KPK Law, the old government was the KKN government. It used to be coordinated," he said.

Unlike the New Order, said Mahfud, currently, anyone can commit corruption. Starting from the DPR, regional heads at the provincial to district/city levels, to judges of the Constitutional Court (MK).

"Now look at the DPR, corruption itself. The Supreme Court judges its own corruption, the Constitutional Court, governors, regional heads, DPRD are all corrupt individually. Now the State Budget before it was created has been corrupted. In the past, the State Budget used to be so many trillions, oh later this PT was given road projects, organizational affairs, medical matters exist, a way is made to take projects," said Mahfud MD.

BLBI Case Example

On that occasion, Mahfud said he needed to explain the existing conditions so that people would not continue to blame the current government. One of them is regarding the number of complaints related to the BLBI case that have been left for decades.

"Let's see, people have to understand this so they don't always blame the government, why are they silent, the government is stupid, how come the BLBI has been allowed to run for 20 years. I think Mr. Jokowi has only been president for 6 years, I have only been a minister for 1 year. 20 years means that the previous 16 years are not our concern. We are actually inherited waste that must be resolved," he said.

Furthermore, Mahfud said the BLBI case occurred in 2004. According to him, there were reports that this case had corruption until the court judge finally decided that there was corruption in this case. However, when the case reached the Supreme Court level, Sjamsul Nur Salim was acquitted.

"Then what is blamed by the government is why the corruptors are released, it is the court that frees us. We are not allowed to enter the courts. Some are analyzing it's a game with judges, we can't do it, judges play or not, we can't enter," he said.