President Jokowi Asked To Lobby The Malaysian Government To Send Fugitive Djoko Tjandra

Djoko tjandra (Twitter / @ xxdigeembok)

JAKARTA - Coordinator of the Indonesian Anti-Corruption Society (MAKI) Boyamin Saiman asked President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) to step in by lobbying the Malaysian government to repatriate the fugitive in the Cessie Bank Bali case, Djoko Tjandra to Indonesia.

He asked Jokowi to step down directly because previously, Attorney General M. Prasetyo, who served in 2014-2019, had tried to repatriate Djoko via extradition but failed.

"It takes the role of Indonesian President Joko Widodo to lobby and high-level diplomacy with Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyidin Yassin to return Djoko Tjandra to Indonesia," Boyamin said as quoted from his written statement, Tuesday, July 21.

In addition, Boyamin sees that there have been good reciprocal efforts between Indonesia and the Malaysian government. For example, with the return of Siti Aisyah from Malaysia who was accused of poisoning the brother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Kim Jong Nam at KLIA Airport, Kuala Lumpur.

Despite being threatened with the death penalty, with high-level lobbying efforts including the handover of the luxury ship Equaminity to Malaysia, Siti Aisyah could then be brought back to Indonesia and received directly by President Jokowi.

Furthermore, he considered that diplomacy and lobbying should be possible because President Jokowi and Malaysian Prime Minister Muhyidin Yassin had good relations. This can be seen when Muhyidin was elected and inaugurated as the Prime Minister of Malaysia, President Jokowi contacted him and congratulated him.

"This good relationship should be used to repatriate Djoko Tjandra from Malaysia," he said.

The repatriation process is deemed difficult if President Jokowi does not immediately intervene in diplomacy. This is because Boyamin suspects that Djoko Tjandra has a close relationship and received special treatment from former Malaysian Prime Minister Nazib Razak.

Not to mention, a number of conflicts in the country to make Djoko Tjandra avoid his legal case also continue to occur. Starting from Djoko Tjandra entering Indonesian territory without being detected, getting an e-KTP, passport, travel documents, and missing the status of the ban has embarrassed the Indonesian government.

Boyamin continued, this is considered to be an embarrassment to the government and the people of Indonesia, so it is only fitting for President Jokowi to step in. "All efforts by the authorities have failed, so President Jokowi must act to arrest Doko Tjandra," he said.

In addition to asking Jokowi to intervene, Boyamin also asked the South Jakarta District Court to reject the request for re-submission (PK) submitted by the fugitive. Moreover, currently Djoko has been absent three times due to illness, which is suspected only as an excuse to stall for trial time.

He also considered that an online trial request such as the one submitted by Djoko could not be implemented and should be rejected.

This is because the implementation of online trials in Indonesia due to the COVID-19 pandemic is carried out only for defendants who are detained or not detained who are not fugitives. "So Djoko Tjandra's online trial request is clearly a form of insult to the court so that it should have been rejected by the judge," he said.

"Djoko Tjandra must be aware that he is a fugitive so he should not dictate to the court for an online trial and the court should not continue the trial because he does not respect the trial process," Boyamin added.

Djoko Tjandra registered a case review (PK) at the South Jakarta District Court on June 8.

However, during 3 trials that were held on June 29, July 6 and July 20, the fugitive never appeared because he was sick. Djoko's attorney said that his client was in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia for treatment.

In order for the trial to proceed by presenting Djoko as the petitioner, his attorney, Andi Putra Kusuma, asked the panel of judges to hold a review hearing (PK) for the transfer of the right to collect Bank Bali debts online on July 27.

This application was requested because the trial was the last. In addition, Andi said that his client is now sick and cannot follow him directly. In addition, it is currently entering a new normal during the COVID-19 pandemic.

So, this online trial request must be granted and the legal process continues. "There should be an adjustment regarding the current condition of COVID," said Andi.

However, the Panel of Judges at the South Jakarta District Court did not grant this wish. The assembly still wants Djoko Tjandra to be present at the trial on 27 July.