PDIP Provides Legal Assistance For Semarang Mayor Mbak Ita

Semarang City Hall. ANTARA/Zuhdiar Laeis

Central Java PDI-P DPD Chairman Bambang Wuryanto ensured that his party was ready to provide legal assistance to Semarang Mayor Hevearita Gunaryanti Rahayu for alleged corruption cases within the local city government.

"As party cadres, we will provide assistance to Mrs. Ita (Hevearita, ed) and Mas Arwin (Alwin Basri, Ita's husband, ed)," said the figure who is familiarly called Bambang Pacul as reported by ANTARA, Tuesday, July 23.

Mbak Ita is the Deputy Chairperson of the DPC PDI Perjuangan Semarang City, while the husband is also a bandeng cadre who serves as Chairman of Commission D of the Central Java Provincial DPRD.

"We will provide legal assistance. That is if the legal process runs," he said.

Previously, investigators from the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) conducted searches of a number of regional apparatus agencies and organizations (OPD) within the Semarang City Government, since Wednesday (17/7).

Searches by KPK investigators at a number of OPD Semarang City Government offices, both in the City Hall complex and Pandanaran Building.

Not only searching, KPK investigators also asked for information from a number of OPD leaders of the Semarang City Government.

Bambang admitted that the KPK search did have an impact on Ita's electability as an incumbent in the 2024 Semarang City Pilkada contestation.

"That the influence on electability, of course, exists, but over time hopefully makes us more careful and maybe stronger," he said.

In addition, Bambang also said that his party still respects the search steps by the KPK as part of the ongoing legal process.

"Yes, this is a legal issue. Because this is a legal issue, of course the PDI-P will obey the law," he said.

Previously, the KPK stated that the search was related to the handling of three suspected corruption cases within the Semarang City Government.

The three alleged corruption cases include the procurement of goods and services within the Semarang City Government in 2023' 2024, the alleged extortion of civil servants for incentives for collecting taxes and levies in the Semarang City area, as well as the alleged receipt of gratuities in 2023' 2024.

KPK investigators have also named a number of parties as suspects in the case. However, it has not provided further information regarding the identities of the parties.