Firli Bahuri Reported To The KPK Council Regarding SMS Blast, Deputy Chair: It's Budgeted

KPK chairman Firli Bahuri during an audience with the police and prosecutors in Banten/PHOTO: KPK Public Relations

JAKARTA - Deputy Chairperson of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) Alexander Marwata explained that the SMS Blast, which made KPK Chairman Firli Bahuri reported to the Supervisory Board, had indeed been budgeted for. The SMS Blast is called to remind state officials to submit the State Administrators Wealth Report (LHKPN).

"The SMS Blast has indeed been budgeted for because it is intended by state officials to submit their LHKPN," said Alexander in a press conference broadcast on the Indonesian KPK YouTube, Friday, March 11.

"Even I can too," he added.

Meanwhile, Acting Spokesperson for the KPK for Enforcement, Ali Fikri, believes that the KPK Supervisory Board will investigate in accordance with applicable operational regulations and standards. Thus, the follow-up to the alleged ethical violation was handed over to Tumpak Hatorangan Panggabean and other members of the Council.

"Of course we completely leave it to the KPK supervisory board because in accordance with its duties and authorities as in the KPK Law, it is there to receive and follow up on complaints from the public," said Ali on the same occasion.

"We are confident that the KPK supervisory board will dig up the facts professionally. So we need to convey it, of course because we and all of us submit the process to the Supervisory Board," he added.

Ali also asked the public not to conclude beforehand about the report. This is because the final results of this report will be presented in a transparent manner.

"We also hope that we do not conclude prematurely regarding the reports in question. Because as a form of accountability from the Dewas, of course we always convey the results of each public complaint report received by the Dewas as a form of transparency," he said.

As previously reported, Firli Bahuri was again reported to the KPK Supervisory Board. He was reported for allegedly using the KPK facility in the form of SMS Blast which was financed by the state for his personal interests.

This report was submitted by former KPK employees who are members of the Indonesia Calling (IM) 57+ Institute today, Friday, March 11.

IM57+ Senior Investigator Rizka Anunata said Firli was suspected of using SMS Blast to convey messages that were not related to the implementation of his duties and responsibilities as the head of the anti-corruption commission.

"The report submitted relates to the allegation that the Chairman of the KPK has arbitrarily used KPK facilities financed by the state budget for his personal interests in the form of sending SMS messages that are not related to the implementation of his duties and responsibilities as the Chair of the KPK," Rizka said in a written statement quoted Friday, 11 March.

Rizka explained that there were a number of people who received SMS Blast from the Indonesian KPK which later went viral on social media. The short message reads: Perfect humans are not humans who never make mistakes, but humans who always learn from mistakes. Chairperson of the Corruption Eradication Commission of the Republic of Indonesia.

The sound of this message then became the spotlight. Moreover, at the end of the message only on behalf of the Chairman of the KPK and there is no anti-corruption message or anything related to Firli's duties as chairman.

With this condition, IM57+ suspects Firli has violated the Basic Values of Integrity as stated in Article 4 paragraph (1) letter d, paragraph (1) letter o, and paragraph (2) letter i of the Regulation of the Supervisory Board of the Corruption Eradication Commission of the Republic of Indonesia Number 02 of 2020 concerning the Enforcement of the Code of Ethics and the Code of Conduct of the Corruption Eradication Commission.