Village Fund Corruption Reporters Become Suspects, LPSK: Can Frighten Other Reporters

JAKARTA - The Witness and Victim Protection Agency (LPSK) assessed that the suspect determination of the former Head of Financial Affairs (Kaur) of Citemu Village, Mundu District, Cirebon Regency, Nurhayati, who reported the alleged corruption of village funds, set a bad precedent.

"This certainly sets a bad precedent in efforts to eradicate corruption in village funds by Kuwu elements in Cirebon Regency," said Deputy Chair of LPSK Maneger Nasution in a written statement received in Jakarta, Sunday, February 20.

The former treasurer of Citemu Village, Nurhayati, is known to have revealed a case of state losses of Rp. 800 million from 2018 to 2020. Later, he is now a suspect.

The determination of the suspect against Nurhayati is feared to hamper efforts to eradicate corruption in the country, especially regarding the case of village funds.

According to Nasution, if it is true that Nurhayati is carrying out her duties as village treasurer according to her main duties and functions, namely disbursing the village fund budget at the bank, and having received a recommendation from the sub-district head and the Village Community Empowerment Service (DPMD), the person concerned should not be punished.

Article 51 of the Criminal Code states that a person who commits an act to carry out a position order given by the competent authority may not be punished, Nasution said. Instead, as a reporter, Nurhayati should be appreciated.

"This case makes parties who know about corruption crimes will not dare to report, for fear of becoming a suspect as experienced by Nurhayati," he said as quoted by Antara.

He assessed that the determination of the status of the suspect who was pinned to the reporter in the village fund corruption case had harmed common sense, legal justice and public justice.

LPSK reminded that Nurhayati's legal position as a reporter is guaranteed by the Witness and Victim Protection Act not to get backlash, as long as the report is given in good faith.

"Whistleblowers cannot be prosecuted legally, both criminally and civilly, for reports that will be, are being or have been given," he said.

If there is a lawsuit against the reporter for his report, the lawsuit must be postponed until the reported case has been decided by the court and has permanent legal force. This is as mandated by Article 10 Paragraphs (1) and (2) of Law Number 13 of 2006 as amended by Law Number 31 of 2014 concerning Protection of Witnesses and Victims.

In fact, in Government Regulation (PP) Number 43 of 2018 it is stated that people who provide information to law enforcement regarding alleged corruption will receive an award in the form of a charter.

Finally, LPSK will take proactive steps to meet the person concerned to explain Nurhayati's constitutional right to apply for protection to the state, especially to LPSK if the person concerned needs protection.

Cirebon City Police, West Java Regional Police, named the treasurer of Citemu Nurhayati Village as a suspect in village fund corruption.

"The determination of Nurhayati's sister as a suspect is also in accordance with the rule of law. Based on the instructions given by the public prosecutor," he said

Cirebon City Police Chief AKBP Fahri Siregar emphasized that the determination of the suspect status to Nurhayati was in accordance with the rule of law. The police have several times completed case files for cases of corruption in village funds carried out by the Village Head Citemu Supriyadi, but the Public Prosecutor always refuses, arguing that they are incomplete.

Fahri continued that after being rejected, his party re-examined the case, and then referred to the treasurer of Citemu Nurhayati Village, after he was named a suspect after fulfilling the evidence.

"Sister Nurhayati was examined in depth, whether the act (with disbursing funds) was against the law or not. And from the results of the investigation that Sister Nurhayati was involved in enriching Supriadi's brother (so he was named a suspect)," he said.

Fahri admitted that his party had not found any evidence related to the flow of village funds into Nurhayati's personal pocket, but his party confirmed that the determination of Nurhayati's suspect was in accordance with the rule of law.