A series of arrests of high-ranking government officials by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) shows that the corruption prevention system has not worked. There are questions on the role of the inspectorates.
Two days ago, the KPK arrested Sea Transportation director general Antonius Tonny Budiono and Adiputra Kurniawan (Commissionaire of PT Adhi Guna Keruktama) together with evidence in the form of 33 bags of cash valued at more than Rp 20 billion. The public have to thank the KPK, which tirelessly strives to fight corruption. Amid political pressure from the House of Representatives, including a threat to issue a government regulation in lieu of law to weaken the KPK, the anti-corruption commission has continued to work. Despite the absence of political support from the House, one by one, corrupt officials are arrested by the KPK.
The arrests of Tonny and other officials show that the supervision in the ministries does not work. The mental revolution rhetoric has not led to changes in the bureaucracy. The inspectorate generals in the ministries fail to detect any deviations that lead to corruption. In several cases even, the inspectorate generals are involved in corruption, such as Inspectorate General of the Villages, Disadvantaged Regions and Transmigration Ministry Sugito, who was reportedly involved in bribing auditors of the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK).
Tonny has been named as a suspect by the KPK together with Adiputra Kurniawan. Quoting KPK deputy chairperson Basaria Pandjaitan, Adiputra was believed to bribe Tonny in connection with the dredging works on Tanjung Emas Port, Semarang. The KPK seized 33 bags of cash containing the US dollar and Malaysian ringgit. The total value of cash was Rp 18.9 billion. There was also money in a bank account with a balance of Rp 1.17 billion. The KPK also found a new mode of bribery, namely through the handover of an ATM card.
The rising corruption practices in ministries also results in the reviewing of the roles of the inspectorates. KPK officials used to say that nearly no corruption findings were discovered by the inspectorates. The red-handed arrests by the KPK started from information from the public. This shows that the inspectorates have not played their role in preventing corruption.
The directorate generals are expected to detect any possible links to corruption. A whistle blower system connected with the KPK has to be created to prevent corruption. The inspectors are not people who mentally position themselves as the subordinates of the ministers or feel the need to safeguard policies of the ministers. The inspectorate generals have to be those who have competence, integrity and commitment against corruption. The independence of the inspectorate can possibly become a way out.
The move by ministries to promote a former commissionaire of the KPK as an inspectorate general – recent appointments include Muhammad Yasin in the Religious Affairs Ministry and Haryono Umar in the Education and Culture Ministry – is expected to help develop and spread a system that prevents future corruption practices.
