Potential Corruption Can Still Happen Despite Winning WTP Opinion

Public policy observer at Jember University Hermanto Rohman said the potential for corruption could still occur with an unqualified opinion (WTP) given by the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) to a number of local governments in East Java.

The Jember Regency Government received a WTP opinion from the Supreme Audit Agency of the Republic of Indonesia on the 2022 Regional Government Financial Report (LKPD) after 5 years of waiting because previously it had received a disclaimer opinion in 2019 and an unnatural opinion in 2020.

"Recommendations on the findings of BPK audit results in Jember indicate that the potential for bureaucratic opportunistics for corruption still exists with the presence of overpayment of honorariums and capital expenditures," said Hermanto Rohman as quoted by ANTARA, Friday, May 26.

According to him, the opinion issued by the BPK as an institution has the authority to conduct an examination of the financial statements submitted by the regional government in 2022 based on four things, namely conformity with Government Accounting Standards (SAP), compliance with laws and regulations, effectiveness of the internal control system, and adequacy of disclosure.

"The WTP assessment ensures that the local government's financial statements are in accordance with the SAP. However, the opinion also allows that there are still some recommendations submitted in the form of follow-up recommendations for the results of the examination," he said.

He said the BPK gave recommendations to the Jember Regency Government covering three things, namely that the honorarium expenditure of Rp. 1.4 billion was not in accordance with the provisions, overpayments for the realization of capital expenditures, and administration of regional property in the form of fixed assets that were not yet fully orderly.

"Of course it is the findings that must be revealed and improved through internal control. From the substance of the recommendation, actually classical problems that seem to continue to appear in Jember and several other districts," he said.

Based on Gone Theory, there are four main factors that cause corruption, namely greed behavior (greeds), opportunities (opportunities), needs (needs), and disclosure (exposures).

"Based on this theory, when it comes to financial reports that have received the WTP predicate in Jember, the two causes of corruption that can be minimized are operations and exposures," he said.

Hermanto assessed that the mentality of bureaucratic opportunistics with potential corruption is still one of the reasons is through a scheme to increase honorarium spending and also capital expenditures which also has the potential for practice meetings, namely providing opportunities for certain economic groups to benefit from the government budget and the mode is usually through capital expenditures.

"It should be understood that WTP is not the ultimate goal of financial management and the achievement of local government performance achievements for the community, but it is necessary to appreciate it as an effort to improve the performance of regional financial management," he said.

He explained that the WTP achievement must be a driving force for local governments to work hard to improve financial management that is more transparent and accountable for the greatest benefit of the people.