Legal Process Must Be Open, Stresses Senior Minister

KOMPAS/WAWAN H PRABOWO

A lawyer for Bank Bali corruption case fugitive Djoko Soegiarto Tjandra, Andri Putra Kusuma, gives information to journalists at the South Jakarta District Court, Monday (6/7/2020). Judges at the South Jakarta District Court again delayed a hearing on the petition for a review submitted by Djoko Tjandra as he claimed to be ill.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Mahfud M.D. plans to summon four institutions to oversee progress in the hunt for fugitive Bank Bali graft convict Joko S. Tjandra. Mahfud reminded the agencies that all legal procedures must be open.The four institutions that Mahfud intends to summon are the National Police, the Attorney General\'s Office (AGO), the Law and Human Rights Ministry and the Home Ministry.

"There have been no reports [on any progress in the Joko Tjandra case]. However, in the near future, [I] will summon these four institutions, as well as the Law and Human Rights Minister regarding the immigration issue. We will coordinate," Mahfud said on Tuesday (7/7/2020) in a written statement.

Read also: Playing with Law

The institutions would be summoned, said Mahfud, so that the people would be aware of developments in the efforts to capture Joko and to prevent speculation. He said that in a democracy, the people had a right to a transparent legal process. Even so, all information must be screened before publication to ensure confidentiality and to prevent releasing information that the fugitive could use to escape the law.

"All legal processes must be open because [the case] is in the public spotlight," Mahfud said. Earlier, Mahfud had instructed the Attorney General to capture Joko.

Joko was sentenced to 2 years in prison in 2009 for his role in the Bank Bali corruption case. A day before the Supreme Court read out its decision on Joko’s case review (PK), he had fled Indonesia for Papua New Guinea. After 11 years of being on the run, Joko reportedly resurfaced in Indonesia on 8 June 2020 to obtain an electronic identity (e-ID) card at the South Grogol subdistrict office in South Jakarta. He then used the newly issued e-ID card to file another petition for a case review at the South Jakarta District Court.

Joko, however, did not show up to the court hearings on 29 June and 6 July, which is required in a case review. The judicial panel gave Joko a final chance to present himself at the court for the hearing on 20 July.

Read also: Probe Those Facilitating Joko Tjandra

Until yesterday, the prosecutor\'s office was still pursuing the hunt for Joko. Hari Setiyono, who heads the law information center at the AGO, said that the office could not confirm Joko\'s whereabouts. "The Attorney General has stated that the AGO will continue its search for [Joko] and arrest any who are involved. The team is working," he said.

KOMPAS/DANU KUSWORO

The South Jakarta District Court judges chaired by Soedarto, on  Monday (28/8/2000), acquit Bali corruption case defendant Djoko Tjandra of all charges. The panel of judges was of the opinion that the case involving Joko Tjandra was a civil case.

Regarding the possibility that Joko was in Malaysia as his lawyer had suggested, Hari said that he not been able to confirm the information. "We are still searching [for Joko]. We do not know yet whether he is in Malaysia or not," he said.

Report to the Ombudsman

A number of civil society groups have called for a thorough investigation into those who had helped Joko reenter Indonesia, apply for an e-ID card and file a case review. On Tuesday (7/7), the Indonesian Anti-Corruption Society (MAKI) filed a report with the Indonesia Ombudsman that named the director general of Immigration at the Law and Human Rights Ministry, the Secretariat of NCB-Interpol Indonesia and the head of the South Grogol subdistrict office.

MAKI coordinator Boyamin Saiman said that the immigration director general was reported to the ombudsman on suspicion of misconduct or deliberately allowing Joko to enter and exit Indonesia with ease.

The South Grogol subdistrict head was reported for issuing the e-ID card for Joko in an accelerated process.

Meanwhile, the NCB-Interpol Indonesia Secretariat was reported for a letter it had sent to the immigration office that the AGO had not extended Joko Tjandra\'s fugitive status. The South Grogol subdistrict head was reported for issuing the e-ID card for Joko in an accelerated process.

Adrianus Meliala of the Indonesia Ombudsman said the office had received the report from MAKI. The ombudsman must still review the formal aspects of the report and the completeness of the appended documents. If the documents met the requirements, the ombudsman will proceed to the investigation phase.

According to Adrianus, the ombudsman possessed the authority to investigate any allegations of administrative mismanagement at government agencies. The agencies named in MAKI’s report can be summoned in the ombudsman’s investigation. The ombudsman would not investigate the identities of those alleged to have masterminded Joko’s movements, but would seek to determine whether administrative errors had been made in the case.

KOMPAS/HARRY SUSILO

The home of Joko Tjandra, a fugitive convicted in the Bank Bali graft case, stands near Simprug Golf Course in South Jakarta as seen on Friday (3/7/2020). After 11 years on the run, Joko Tjandra appeared in Jakarta to file a petition for review with the South Jakarta District Court on June 8. He then disappeared again. The Attorney General\'s Office is searching for him.

Meanwhile, the Population and Civil Registry director general Zudan Arif Fakrulloh of the Home Ministry said that Joko appeared as “inactive” in the registry’s database, and had neither conducted any transactions nor renewed his data for nine years. On that basis, his civil registry record had been deactivated.

"The data will be activated automatically when the person renews his data to apply for an electronic ID card. [Joko’s] civil registry data shows no changes in name, address, place or date of birth from 2008 to 8 June 2020," he said.(DEA/BOW/PDS)