Witness Admits That East Kolaka National Education Administration Stopped After Regent's OTT

The KPK prosecutor presented a witness for the defendant, former Director General of Regional Finance at the Ministry of Home Affairs, Mochamad Ardian Noervianto at the Jakarta/ANTARA/Desca Lidya Natalia Corruption Court

JAKARTA - The former Head of Region 1 under the Sub-Directorate of Regional Loans and Regional Bonds of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Poltak Pakpahan, admitted that there was a request to terminate the administration of the 2021 National Economic Recovery (PEN) loan for East Kolaka after the arrest operation (OTT) of East Kolaka Regent Andi Merya.

"I've moved from the Regional Loans Sub-Directorate, I left before Kokala Timur was finished, but it's only a matter of which regions are accepted, which ones haven't. So, there's no consideration letter yet, I just want to make it," said Poltak at the Corruption Court. (Tipikor) Jakarta was reported by ANTARA, Thursday, August 4.

Poltak was a witness for two defendants, namely the former Director General of Regional Finance at the Ministry of Home Affairs, Mochamad Ardian Noervianto, who received a bribe of Rp. 1.5 billion and the Head of the Muna Regency Environment Service, La Ode M. Syukur Akbar, who received a bribe of Rp. 175 million from the Regent of Kolaka. The inactive Timur Andi Merya and LM Rusdianto Emba are related to the approval of the PEN loan fund for the East Kolaka district in 2021.

Previously, the KPK team conducted an OTT against the East Kolaka Regent Andi Merya and the Head of the East Kolaka Regional Disaster Management Agency (BPBD) Anzarullah on September 21, 2021 at the East Kolaka Regent's office.

Andi Merya received a bribe of Rp250 million in two stages from Anzarullah related to the budget for planning the construction of 100 housing units and bridges handled by the East Kalimantan BPBD.

"Actually, I'm sorry, (the process) was not continued, when I wanted to make data, Mrs. Ana was told, she said, 'Try to make data, there are backdates everywhere, there has been a letter of consideration but for East Kolaka, this is pending because there is OTT'," said Poltak.

Ana is the Head of Sub-Directorate of Regional Loans and Regional Bonds, Yuniar Dyah Prananingrum, who is the superior of Poltak.

"Then I don't know anymore, sir, so we do something else, I don't want to know sir, so the important thing is that I just do my job, sir," said Poltak.

Poltak as the analyst is in charge of drafting a letter of consideration from the Ministry of Home Affairs as one of the requirements for a region to obtain a PEN loan.

"When the disposition came, we prepared the required documents. However, indeed for East Kolaka there was a request for revision because the loan numbers changed," added Poltak.

In accordance with the Minister of Finance Regulation (PMK), he said, the process at the Ministry of Home Affairs should only take 3 days. However, this is not possible.

"From (my) staff to the head of the sub-directorate to reread and then print and initialize, enter the director, from the director to the director general, from the director general to the secretary general a disposition is made to the law bureau, returned to the secretary general then to the secretariat of the inspector general, from the inspector general back to the secretary general then to the staff. I just went to the minister, so it's not necessarily all that day. For all regions the process takes more than 3 days, sir," said Poltak.

In the indictment, it is stated that the defendant Ardian Noervianto told Laode Syukur to approve the application for the East Kolaka PEN loan.

At Ardian's request, on June 10, 2021, La Ode Syukur and Sukarman Loke met at Ardian's office. During the meeting, Ardian asked Laode Syukur a fee of 1 percent.

Furthermore, Andi Merya asked Mujeri Dachri Muchlis (Andi Merya's husband) to transfer the total amount of Rp2 billion in stages, namely on June 11 and 16, 2021 to a Bank Mandiri account in the name of LM Rusdianto Emba to be handed over to Ardian through Laode Syukur and Sukarman Loke.

For the PEN loan application from the East Kolaka Regency Government, Ardian gave priority to discussing it in a coordination meeting with PT SMI, East Kolaka Regency Government, the Ministry of Finance (DJPK), and the Ministry of Home Affairs which resulted in East Kolaka getting a PEN loan of IDR 151 billion.