The Attorney General's Office Asked To Open Again Cases Of Purchase Of 15 MA60 Aircraft That Lose Hundreds Of Billions Of State

IPW Chairman Sugeng Teguh Santoso/PHOTO: Rizky Adytia-VOI

The Attorney General's Office (AGO) has been asked to reopen the investigation into cases of alleged corruption and money laundering (TPPU) in the purchase of 15 MA60 aircraft which caused state losses to reach 46.5 million US dollars or around Rp700 billion.

The pressure was conveyed by Indonesia Police Watch (IPW) because the case stalled its handling for about 13 years.

"We, as a legal monitoring agency, get data. Then as a data for legal purposes, there is nothing wrong with us bringing it back. So, all the data submitted if it is confirmed we have to re-lift it," said IPW Chairman Sugeng Teguh Santoso to reporters, Thursday, August 15.

The pressure is also based on a sense of concern about the status of the case that will expire if it is not immediately investigated again. Moreover, so that all the perpetrators behind it can be revealed.

"So that the alleged game of the Patuguplik or collusion carried out by entrepreneurs by abusing the authority of the official can be dismantled," he said.

"Moreover, this is state money if it is calculated by exchange rate, now the loss is around Rp. 700 billion," continued Sugeng.

Regarding the case, Sugeng said that the alleged corruption began on August 29, 2005. At that time, the Indonesian-China Joint Commission Meeting was taking place.

Then, an offer for the purchase of MA60 aircraft emerged to the Merpati Nusantara Airlines company. Then, it was followed up with the signing of the MoU in 2006 between Merpati Nusantara Airlines and Xian Aircraft Industry from China.

On August 5, 2008, the signing of the purchase of 15 MA60 aircraft for Merpati Nusantara Airlines between the Director General of Debt Management representing the Government of Indonesia and the China Exim Bank with a loan disbursement system guaranteed by the government, with a policy of policy of budget allocation only based on the approval of unscrupulous members of the House of Representatives Commission IX in terms of the issuance of a subsidiary loan agreement or SLA worth 200 million US dollars.

Sugeng said that in the process of purchasing prices per unit of the MA60 aircraft produced by Xian Aircraft Industry, it was inflated from the original price of 11.2 million to 14.3 million US dollars.

In fact, the aircraft purchase scheme that does not have a Federation Aviation Administration (FAA) certification is changed from business to business to government to business

"The modus operandi for securing money from criminal acts of corruption and money laundering offenses amounting to US$46.5 million was carried out through engineering by creating a 'obscurity' broker who was confirmed as if to be the selling agent of 15 Xian Aircraft Industry aircraft, played by MS using PT MGGS allegedly on the initiative of AH, the owner of PT IMC PL and PT IM," said Sugeng.

Not only that, it is suspected that the money from the corruption crime has been transferred or spent, considering that the case has been going on for a long time.

In fact, there are allegations that money is used to buy goods, including coal floating cranes, to be disguised.

Citing the report on the results of the examination by the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK), Sugeng said that PT MGGS was known as the selling agent for 15 Xian Aircraft Industry aircraft from China worth IDR 2.13 trillion or US$232.443 million.

Aircraft operations from 2007 to 2011 are said to have suffered a loss of Rp56 billion in which one of the M60 aircraft crashed in the waters of Kaimana, West Papua, which killed 27 passengers on May 11, 2011.

Based on the facts and evidence that match with each other, Sugeng stated that the alleged corruption and/or money laundering offenses in the purchase of 15 MA60 aircraft that had been investigated by the Prosecutor's Office since 2011 should be continued.

"We demand that the alleged corruption case of corruption and/or money laundering offenses in the purchase of 15 MA60 aircraft units that cost the state US$46.5 million can be followed up again in order to prevent the occurrence of cold cases in accordance with applicable legal and statutory provisions," said Sugeng.