KPK Awaits Leaders with Integrity

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Today is the registration deadline for the 2019-2023 Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) leadership application. The KPK faces an increasingly heavy challenge in finding a leader who is capable, independent and honest.

JAKARTA, KOMPAS — The registration for the 2019-2023 KPK leadership is scheduled to end on Thursday evening.

Amidst the increasing challenges for the KPK, figures of varying backgrounds who are honest and possess the necessary skills to eradicate corruption have been invited to join the selection process, so that the best applicants can be appointed to lead the antigraft body.

The registration period opened on 17 June. By Wednesday afternoon, 194 individuals had registered to take part in the KPK selection. The data of the KPK Selection Committee (Pansel) showed that only 64 out of 194 applicants met all requirements.

The data also shows that 40 are academics, 43 are lawyers or legal consultants, 18 are businessmen, 13 are prosecutors or judges, eight are members of the National Police, three are auditors, two are KPK commissioners or employees, and the rest come from other backgrounds.

A sharp increase in registration was seen on Wednesday. The day before had seen only 133 new applicants. "We expected that more people would register later [in the process]," KPK Pansel member Hendardi said in Jakarta on Wednesday.

Hendardi said that the selection team had hoped that the number of applicants would increase. People from all walks of life still had a chance to register, as the candidate registration for the 2019-2023 KPK leadership team would close at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday.

In comparison, 609 people had registered for the 2015-2019 KPK leadership selection process, far higher than the 233 people who registered for the 2011-2015 selection, while the 2007-2011 selection saw 661 applicants. (Kompas, 29/6/2015)

Regarding the fluctuating number of applicants, KPK Pansel chair Yenti Garnasih said that the growing challenges in corruption eradication were thought to be the cause of the relatively small number of applicants for the 2019-2023 KPK leadership selection.

However, it was likely that the selection team would not extend the registration deadline. For example, said Yenti, extending the 2015 registration deadline saw a jump in the number of applicants.

"From only 130 applicants, the number suddenly increased to 600. [During] the initial selection, 450 people were dropped," she said.

It turned out that many applicants were simply looking for a job. This was part of the considerations and evaluation criteria for this year’s selection process, Yenti added.

Several KPK employees are expected to register today. It is planned for the KPK employees team to register nine current KPK employees for the KPK leadership selection process.

Future of the KPK

KPK spokesman Febri Diansyah expressed appreciation those who had shown interest in taking part in the KPK leadership selection process. He also hoped that the applicants had good track records and possessed high integrity, so they would have a positive impact on the KPK’s future.

"If you meet the requirements and track record in eradicating corruption, registering with the selection team is a form of real support for the KPK\'s future," said Febri.

He also encouraged the public to provide information about the applicants. This was important, so that members of the public could assist the selection committee in choosing the best candidates. The KPK would also be providing information on the applicants’ track records to the selection committee.

"Again, the future of the KPK is greatly influenced by the results of the selection. The KPK will continue to invite all parties to support this selection process to produce leaders who truly possess anti-corruption attitudes and values and are able to maintain public trust," Febri said.

According to Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) researcher Donal Fariz, the KPK would face the challenge of maintaining public trust in handling corruption cases over the next five years. The KPK would also face internal problems and dual loyalty that must be resolved.

Donal said that the issue of dual loyalty within the KPK had the potential to disrupt the commission’s independence, which could erode public trust. In the midst of this situation, he said, the KPK would also face human resource issues and increasingly complex corruption cases, such as corporate corruption.

Independent figure

Busyro Muqoddas, the 2010-2011 KPK Pansel chairman, stressed that the next KPK leadership must be filled with independent and professional people. This was an absolute requirement to develop KPK leaders who possessed integrity in combating corruption.

Busyro also said that in determining the selection criteria, this year’s KPK Pansel should explore the background and history of the commission’s establishment. The selection committee must also understand the substance and explanatory articles of the KPK Law.

In addition, the selection team must understand the KPK’s human resource regulations and be knowledgeable about the professionalism and independence of the KPK leadership since its establishment.

Mokhammad Najih, a criminal law lecturer at the University of Muhammadiyah Malang, emphasized the importance of the applicants’ track records in the KPK leadership selection process. He said that even if a candidate was in law enforcement, he should not be elected if his track record did not meet the criteria.

More stringent

Hendardi said that this year’s KPK leadership selection was more stringent in its requirements, and involved several institutions that had not been involved in the last four years.

One of these institutions was the National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT). "For example, the reason we are involving BNPT is because radicalism and terrorism have become the main issues in the recent political and social dynamics," said Hendardi.

Other institutions involved in the process were the National Narcotics Agency (BNN) and the Supreme Court, which were involved in checking the applicants’ track records to determine whether they had been involved in a legal case or not.

https://cdn-assetd.kompas.id/ABSaB4K9cMXYqZ6JA06tCmogEcQ=/1024x576/https%3A%2F%2Fkompas.id%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2019%2F07%2F20190703_ENGLISH-TAJUK_B_web_1562156980.jpg — ANTARA FOTO/WAHYU PUTRO A
Former National Narcotics Agency (BNN) chairman Anang Iskandar (right) registers on Wednesday (3/7/2019) for the 2019-2023 Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) leadership selection process at the secretariat of the KPK leadership selection committee (Pansel) at the State Secretariat, Jakarta. Anang has applied for the post of KPK head.

Even so, Hendardi said, integrity and capability in eradicating corruption would remain the main considerations in choosing the KPK\'s leaders. The KPK Pansel would be employing psychological tests to measure the applicants’ integrity and independence.

House of Representatives (DPR) Speaker Bambang Soesatyo expressed hope that the government would submit the results of the KPK leadership selection by August, so the House could hold the fit and proper test for the KPK candidates in September before the current legislature’s 2014-2019 term came to an end. (NTA/IAN/SHR/WER)

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