SUMMARY:

On Wednesday, March 11, acting National Police Chief Badrodin Haiti announced the police would delay, not drop, its investigations into Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) staff – including inactive KPK Vice Chair Bambang Widjojanto, inactive KPK Chair Abraham Samad, and 21 KPK investigators accused of possessing illegal firearms. Haiti also confirmed that inquiries into allegations against KPK Commissioners Adnan Pandu Praja and Zulkarnain would be halted, but did not elaborate when. The announcement followed a visit from Bambang Widjojanto to National Police headquarters, during which he hand-delivered a letter from interim KPK Chair Taufiqurrahman Ruki requesting the investigations be delayed, in line with President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s instruction to stop the criminalization of the KPK and its supporters.

On Wednesday, March 11, the Jakarta City Council formally launched an inquiry into whether Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama committed procedural and ethical violations through his submission of the 2015 city budget to the Home Affairs Ministry for approval. Ahok claimed Rp 12.1 trillion in unsolicited funding had been surreptitiously inserted into the budget after deliberations had concluded, and refused to submit the inflated request to the central government. A number of political parties have withdrawn their support for the inquiry, but it will proceed based on the earlier council vote, which received unanimous support. After Home Affairs Minister Tjahjo Kumolo’s efforts to mediate the stand-off collapsed last week, the minister has indicated he will return a revised budget soon that proposes additional savings by trimming salaries and perks such as overseas trips. If an agreement cannot be reached, Kumolo said, he would have no choice but to use the city’s 2014 budget in order to keep core programs and services functioning.

On Thursday, March 12, former Deputy Law and Human Rights minister Denny Indrayana underwent questioning at National Police headquarters. In maintaining his innocence, the former minister pointed out that the electronic payment gateway for passport application fees that was initiated during his tenure had brought in Rp 32.4 billion, and therefore had in no way caused state losses. Nonetheless, Denny indicated he was willing to cooperate with police to clear up the matter. On MetroTV’s Mata Najwa program on Wednesday night, Denny said he felt confident the public could clearly see which cases were based on the law and which were not.

Home Affairs Minister Tjahjo Kumolo’s earlier proposal to dramatically increase state support for political parties continued to make waves on Thursday, March 12. ICW researcher Donald Fariz described the proposal as excessive, pointing that the budgets for the KPK, Judicial Commission, National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) and the Constitutional Court were each below Rp 1 trillion. Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) Director Harry Azhar Azis said that his agency would ensure that the funds were properly accounted for and protected from misuse.

On Thursday, March 12, the KPK issued a second summons for the Finance Ministry’s former director general of taxation, Hadi Poernomo, who stands accused of corruption and tax fraud related to Bank Central Asia that caused Rp 375 billion in state losses. For a second time, Poernomo failed to appear, citing poor health. He reportedly was referred to Pondok Indah Hospital today, and was required to be admitted, though his exact affliction was unclear.

On Thursday, March 12, activists rallied against the recent statement from Law and Human Rights Minister Yasona Laoly that convicted corruptors would be eligible for sentence reductions and pardons. A number of people who had supported Jokowi’s presidential ambitions said leniency for corruptors violated a number of campaign pledges. ICW filed a judicial review in January to challenge the Ministry's decree that eased established remission guidelines.

KEY DEVELOPMENTS:

Monday, March 9 – Home Affairs Minister Tjahjo Kumolo proposes dramatic increase in public spending on political parties

Monday, March 9 – Jakarta Corruption Court finds couple guilty in election bribery scandal involving Akil

Tuesday, March 10 – KPK asks Ahok for supporting information on budget mark-ups

Tuesday, March 10 – Team of Nine meet with Vice President Jusuf Kalla

Tuesday, March 10 – Jimly Asshidiqie of Team of Nine meets with Komnas HAM commissioners

Wednesday, March 11 – Ahok reported to National Police

Wednesday, March 11 – Jakarta City Council official launches inquiry into Ahok’s handling of draft budget

Wednesday, March 11 – National Police announce cases against inactive KPK commissioners will be delayed

Thursday, March 12 – Bambang Widjojanto delivers letter requesting delay of investigation to National Police

IMPLICATIONS:

Acting National Police Chief Badrodin Haiti’s statements on Wednesday, March 11, that the police would be delaying or suspending a number of its investigations into KPK staff, come as a welcome confirmation of last week’s agreement between top law enforcement officials. However, the ambiguity regarding when these developments is concerning, as it would serve as a specter that the investigations in question could be revived at any time. National Police Detectives Unit Director Budi Waseso added to those concerns on Thursday afternoon by saying that the police would seek to prove they were not “criminalizing” Bambang, but had strong evidence he was involved in coercing false testimony from witnesses in the 2010 electoral dispute. If the public is asked to believe the police’s rationale that Budi Gunawan was previously cleared of accusations related to bribery and abuse of authority through an internal investigation, the same should apply to Bambang, who has already faced accusations of suborning perjury during his confirmation hearings and the court case itself, and was subsequently cleared.

While the Home Affairs Ministry’s proposal to provide Rp 1 trillion to each political party would provide a tremendous amount of leverage to insist upon stringent reporting requirements and severe criminal sanctions for misuse, previous research indicates political parties lack the basic capacity to manage this amount transparently and would thus put important budgetary resources at unnecessary risk. The prevailing political climate makes it exceptionally unlikely that the proposal will survive in its current form. As negotiations begin over the future of state support for political parties, a more gradual approach would help to build up capacity over time with progressively stricter reporting requirements.

The KPK’s weakened ability to compel suspects and witnesses to provide testimony is a clear consequence of its perceived loss against Budi Gunawan. Coupled with the use of pre-trial motions, and the continued criminalization of anti-corruption figures, corruption suspects have been emboldened in their defiance of national investigators. The KPK’s hesitance to submit an appeal (peninjauan kembali – PK) to the Supreme Court to fight the pre-trial finding that cancelled Budi Gunawan’s status as a suspect has left many supporters, including those in the legal community stumped. Statements from the court that it would likely reject an appeal have been slammed as premature, prejudicial and unethical by a variety of widely respected figures, including the head of the Judicial Commission.

Information as of 5:30 p.m. WIB, March 12, 2015