KPK Ready To Protect Witness Yulmanizar Reported By Haji Isam To The Police

Deputy Chairperson of the KPK Nurul Ghufron (Photo: DOK ANTARA)

JAKARTA - Deputy Chairman of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), Nurul Ghufron, ensured that his party was ready to protect Yulmanizar. He is a witness in the trial of the tax bribery case reported by the owner of PT Jhonlin Baratama, Samsudin Andi Arsyad alias Haji Isam on charges of giving false information and defamation.

"As long as the witness has good intentions in providing correct information, it will be protected by law both by the KPK and the LPSK (Witness and Victim Protection Agency)", said Ghufron to reporters, Friday, October 8.

As a witness, he continued, Yulmanizar has an obligation to provide information on events that he has experienced, heard, or seen directly and must not be intervened by any party.

However, if it is later discovered that the witness gave false information, then a complaint may be made.

"If it turns out that what was witnessed or explained in his testimony in the legal process turns out to be a lie or not true, then the parties who have an interest or are harmed by the information are legally possible to file a complaint", said Ghfuron.

Previously, the KPK had reminded Haji Isam to respect the ongoing tax bribery trial. KPK Spokesperson for Enforcement, Ali Fikri, emphasized that this kind of reporting could interfere with the independence and courage of witnesses in court.

"There should not be certain parties who then report a criminal act in the form of an allegation of submitting false information from a witness during the trial process", Ali told reporters, Thursday, October 7.

"It is feared that this could interfere with the independence and courage of witnesses to reveal what they really know and feel", he added.

Yulmanizar, who is a former tax audit team, was reported for the crime of perjury and false information as referred to in Article 242 of the Criminal Code Law Number 1 of 1946 concerning the Criminal Code, criminal acts of defamation as referred to in Article 310 and/or 311 of the Criminal Code Law Number 1 of 1946 about the Criminal Code.

This report was made by Haji Isam's attorney because from the Inspection Report (BAP) belonging to Yulmanizar, he said that there was conditioning on the value of PT Jhonlin Baratama's corporate tax calculation.

Haji Isam, in the BAP, is said to have given a fee of IDR 40 billion to former officials of the Directorate General of Taxes at the Ministry of Finance, Angin Prayitno Aji, and Dadan Ramdani.