The Jakarta Globe, October 18, 2013.
Another member of Banten Governor Ratu Atut Chosiyah’s political dynasty was called into the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) for questioning on Friday as the antigraft body continued its investigation into a Constitutional Court corruption scandal implicating several Golkar Party members.
Serang Mayor Tubagus Haerul Jaman, the step-brother of Ratu Atut, will appear as a witness to answer questions regarding Tubagus Chaeri Wardhana’s (Wawan) alleged efforts to fix the Lebak District elections.
“We will summon the Serang mayor as a witness in the Lebak election dispute bribery case,” KPK spokesman Priharsa Nugraha said on Friday.
Haerul is the second member of Ratu Atut’s powerful family to be questioned by the KPK.
Ratu Atut’s brother Wawan has been accused of bribing disgraced Constitutional Court chief justice Akil Mochtar for favorable rulings in a disputed election in Banten. The KPK alleged that Wawan was planning to hand over Rp 1 billion to Akil through his lawyer Susi Tur Andayani to rig the result.
The case reached the Constitutional Court. Akil was the presiding judge.
Akil, Wawan and Susi have all been charged with corruption by the KPK.
Wawan, the husband of South Tangerang Mayor Airin Rachmi Diany, reportedly wanted the local Golkar candidates to win the district election. His new attorney Efran Helmi denied the claims, saying that the funds seized from Susi’s home were meant as payment for her work representing Haerul in his disputed victory in Serang.
Ratu Atut’s family has come under fire in recent weeks as antigraft organizations released evidence allegedly proving years of systemic corruption. The family reportedly had their hands on Rp 1.14 trillion worth of projects since 2011, according to Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW). In a separate report, ICW alleged that the family, and its cronies, siphoned off Rp 34.9 billion in public funds for social aid and community-group programs in a single year.
The Supreme Audit Agency released a separate report detailing irregularities in the budgets for several public projects overseen by Ratu Atut’s associates.
Hundreds of residents of Banten have spoken out against Ratu Atut and her family since the arrest of Wawan, alleging that the family, through its political connections and business interests, used the province to amass wealth. Several districts in Banten, from Lebak to Serang, are among the poorest in western Indonesia.
The case has eroded public trust in the Constitutional Court, one of Indonesia’s highest authorities, and shaken Ratu Atut’s grip on Banten.
The Golkar Party remained unfazed earlier this week, calling family dynasties an inevitable fact of Indonesian politics, but Home Affairs Minister Gamawan Fauzi proposed a regulation that would effectively put an end to family-controlled politics, banning immediately family members from holding consecutive office in local elections.
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vr 18 okt 2013 - 19:40