Steps By The Ministry Of Home Affairs To No Longer Consider Regional PEN Fund Loans, Regretted By KPK

KPK Building/Photo: VOI

JAKARTA - The Ministry of Home Affairs (Kemendagri) said that the Minister of Home Affairs (Mendagri) Tito Karnavian was no longer in charge of the consideration of the Regional National Economic Recovery (PEN) loan. This decision was later regretted by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) because the policy actually closed the gap in corruption.

The Inspector-General of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Tumpak Simanjuntak, announced that his ministry would no longer be involved in applying for loans for regional PEN funds. This decision was taken as a result of an evaluation after the former Director General (Dirjen) of Regional Finance of the Ministry of Home Affairs (Kemendagri), Mochamad Ardian Noervianto was named a suspect by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).

Ardian is suspected of accepting bribes for the administration of a regional PEN fund loan proposed by the inactive East Kolaka Regent Andi Merya Nur.

"Based on the mitigation of potential risks that we assess at each stage, it is concluded that the Minister of Home Affairs does not need to give consideration because SMI has already done that," said Inspector General of the Ministry of Home Affairs Tumpak Simanjuntak at the KPK Red and White Building, South Jakarta, Wednesday, February 2.

After the decision was made, Tumpak said, the Ministry of Home Affairs sent a letter to the Ministry of Finance. "There is no need for the Minister of Home Affairs to be involved in giving consideration, which was only given three days," he said.

This decision was regretted by the Deputy Chairman of the KPK, Nawawi Pomolango. He said that the Ministry of Home Affairs should not ask not to be involved in managing regional PEN funds.

The ministry, he continued, should improve regarding the loan management after one of its former officials was named a suspect.

"Perhaps it is better not to ask not to be involved, but to ask for sufficient time to provide considerations based on comprehensive data regarding the application for PEN funds," said Nawawi in a written statement to reporters.

Nawawi said that the consideration for applying for the Regional PEN funds actually closed the gap for the overtaking. Moreover, the Ministry of Home Affairs has also emphasized that Ardian's acceptance of bribes is an individual practice.

"It would be a shame if this filtering process was abolished. Moreover, the Inspector General of the Ministry of Home Affairs previously stated that the case of the former Director-General of the Ministry of Home Affairs, MAN, was an individual case," he said.

"Don't chase away rats on the deck by burning the boat," Nawawi added.

Meanwhile, Deputy Chairperson of the Corruption Eradication Commission Alexander Marwata said that bribery in the management of regional PEN funds occurred because of the lack of transparency in the loan application process. Thus, the gap to carry out negotiations that continue to be presumptuous practices is wide open.

"Regarding loans, if everything is not transparent, it will eventually open up space for the parties to negotiate," said KPK Deputy Chair Alexander Marwata, quoted from the Indonesian KPK YouTube, Thursday, February 3.

With this condition, continued Alexander, his party has repeatedly reminded the Ministry of Home Affairs to openly disclose information related to the management of regional PEN funds borrowing.

"We have reminded many times about transparency. In the past, when the approval was related to DAK, for example, at the Ministry of Finance," he said.

In the future, the KPK will coordinate with parties related to this loan to discuss the loan. Thus, regional heads no longer need to bribe other people to oversee the process.

"Actually, the insider only sells information. What he does actually doesn't exist, does he? It's not an authority, but he has information as if the person concerned can take care of the information in quotes," he said.

"Well, this information was not conveyed by the regional head. Of course, this is our duty and we will coordinate with PT SMI, for example, yes, just open the requirements to get a loan," added Alexander.

As previously reported, Ardian was named a suspect along with two other people. They are the inactive East Kolaka Regent Andi Merya Nur, who is also a suspect in the alleged bribery receipts, and the Head of the Muna Laode Regency Environment Agency, M. Syukur Akbar.

He is suspected of accepting bribes of IDR 1.5 billion in Singapore dollars. Andi Merya Nur gave the money through Laode M Syukur.

From the Rp 2 billion, Ardian received IDR 1.5 billion while Laode M Syukur received IDR 500 million.