Denies Novel Baswedan, KPK Council Says Never Received Report About 'Insider' Azis Syamsuddin

Illustrated (Irfan Meidianto / VOI)

JAKARTA - Member of the Supervisory Board of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) Syamsuddin Haris denied having received reports about eight 'insiders' former Deputy Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives Azis Syamsuddin in the anti-corruption commission.

This statement was conveyed to refute statements by former KPK investigator Novel Baswedan who claimed to know who these people were and reported them to the KPK Council.

"There has never been an official report to the KPK Council regarding eight investigators or KPK insiders who are said to be securing US interests (Azis Syamsuddin)," Haris said when confirmed, Tuesday, October 5.

He just found out about the report from the news. "I just found out from the media," he said.

The previous novel admitted that he had known for a long time that there were eight 'insiders' of Azis Syamsuddin at the KPK. He also admitted that he had reported this to the KPK Supervisory Board (Dewas). It's just that the report is in vain.

"I have also (already) reported the problem to the Council but it doesn't work," Novel said as quoted from his Twitter account @nazaqistha.

Novel thinks that the KPK is afraid that the eight people will be exposed to the public. This, he said, was proven by the anti-corruption commission's efforts to get rid of him and his colleagues who were in charge of the bribery case to investigate the alleged corruption through the National Insight Test (TWK).

"Indeed, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) is afraid that it will be revealed and forbids our team to investigate the case by appointing another team for investigation," he said. The KPK prosecutor read out the BAP belonging to Regional Secretary (Sekda) Tanjungbalai Yusmada. From the file, it was revealed that Azis Syamsuddin had eight insiders at the KPK who were used to secure the corruption case that ensnared him.

The BAP was read out during the trial at the Central Jakarta Corruption Court on Monday, October 4.

"In the Minutes of Investigation (BAP) No. 19, paragraph 2, you explained that M Syahrial said he could get to know Robin because he was assisted by Azis Syamsuddin, the Deputy Speaker of the DPR because he met at Azis' house in Jakarta. M Syahrial also said that Azis had 8 people. At the KPK, who can be mobilized by Azis for the sake of Azis OTT or securing cases, one of them is Robin. That's Azis Syamsuddin, who has secured OTT and secured cases, what case?" asked the Public Prosecutor (JPU) of the KPK Heradian Salipi.

"Nothing was conveyed," Yusmada replied.

Yusmada became a witness for former KPK investigator Stepanus Robin Pattuju and advocate Maskur Husain who were charged with receiving a total of IDR 11.5 billion from handling five cases at the KPK. Yusmada himself has been named as a suspect in the 2019 transfer auction case at the Tanjungbalai City Government.

In the bribery case for handling alleged corruption in Tanjungbalai, Stepanus and Maskur Husain were charged with receiving Rp1.695 billion from the non-active Tanjungbalai Mayor M Syahrial to secure the investigation into the case of buying and selling positions within the Tanjungbalai City government so that it does not go up to the investigation stage.

From this case, the KPK then investigated the alleged termination of handling corruption cases in South Lampung which later ensnared former Deputy Speaker of the Indonesian Parliament Azis Syamsuddin.