JAKARTA - The Ministry of Forestry (Kemenhut) carried out a hand-catching operation against a truck driver who transported 544 pieces of kumea wood (Manilkara merrilliana) without a valid Certificate of Wood Processed Forest (SKSHHKO) document in Makassar, South Sulawesi.
Head of the Forestry Law Enforcement Agency (Gakkum) for the Sulawesi Region, Ali Bahri, said the action was a follow-up to information about the transportation of wood from the Baubau Port, Southeast Sulawesi, to the South Sulawesi region.
"The Forestry Agency is fully committed to eradicating illegal timber trade. This enforcement is a form of the state's presence in maintaining forest sustainability and enforcing forestry law," Ali Bahri said in a statement confirmed from Jakarta, Antara, Monday, January 26.
Ali emphasized that his party would not tolerate any form of transportation of forest products that did not comply with the provisions of laws and regulations.
Currently, investigators are still conducting an in-depth investigation to uncover other parties involved, including the wood owner.
"We will not tolerate any form of transportation of forest products that do not comply with the provisions of laws and regulations. Currently, we continue to deepen to uncover other parties involved, including wood owners," he said.
He explained that the truck driver with the initials R was secured while transporting 544 pieces of kumea wood at Soekarno-Hatta Port, Makassar, last Friday.
During the initial examination, the driver tried to avoid it and told the officers that the truck's cargo contained seaweed.
However, the results of document examination showed that the Transport Note carried by the driver was not in accordance with its provisions. For the transportation of kumea type wood, it should be equipped with SKSHHKO documents, not a Transport Note.
The expert witness from the South Sulawesi Provincial Forestry Service also confirmed that the transportation of kumea wood must be accompanied by a SKSHHKO document through the SIPUHH-ONLINE application, in accordance with the provisions of laws and regulations in the field of forestry.
From the results of the examination, R admitted that he transported the wood from Baubau City, Southeast Sulawesi, with the intention of Maros Regency, South Sulawesi, at the order of the wood owner with the initials H.
Currently, the truck driver has been named a suspect and must undergo legal proceedings. He is threatened with a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum fine of Rp. 2.5 billion.
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