The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) is asking for more time to probe the Bank Century bailout, sparking speculation its leaders are divided over the high-profile issue.
KPK leaders said Monday that the complexity of the bailout meant they needed more time to collect evidence and analyze recommendations from a recent legislative inquiry committee.
The delay will reportedly worsen dissatisfaction among government critics who want to see a swift probe into the Rp 6.76 trillion (US$716) bailout they say was unjustified.
Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) deputy chairman Bibit Samad Rianto said that the inquiry team’s recommendations were raw material that could not be used as evidence.
“The challenge is to ‘convert’ the information into legal evidence,” Bibit said.
“We also need to summon witnesses and officials related to the information as part of the verification procedure,” Bibit said. “It is not easy.”
The majority of the House of Representatives’ members recently concluded that the government’s decisions to inject an initial Rp 689 billion of liquidity support and a bailout of Rp 6.76 trillion in 2008 were illegal.
The decisions were authorized by then Bank Indonesia governor Boediono, now Vice President, and Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati.
In their recommendations, the parliament urged law enforcement institutions, including the KPK, to probe those deemed responsible for the bailout, including the Vice President and the finance minister.
Critics alleged the KPK had made slow progress because the case implicated top government officials, notably Boediono and Mulyani.
Bibit denied this. “We are professional,” he said.
Over the past week, the KPK conducted two Bank Century case “exposes”. Investigators presented their preliminary findings before KPK leaders, who will decide if the case is eligible for a thorough investigation and to name suspects.
The five KPK leaders were reportedly split on whether the preliminary findings were adequate to take the investigation to a higher level.
A source close to the investigation, who refused to be named, said two KPK deputies, Bibit and M. Jasin, had insisted that the evidence was adequate to name some figures as suspects.
However, the source said KPK chairman Tumpak Hatorangan Panggabean and one of his four deputies, Chandra M. Hamzah, maintained that the KPK still needed more evidence.
Deputy chairman Haryono Umar refused to provide his opinion during the exposes.
Bibit and Haryono denied any friction within the KPK collective leadership.
“Where did you get the information from?” Bibit said. “That is untrue. All five of us agreed [to seek more evidence].”
Jasin previously said the KPK had found some criminal evidence in the disbursement of Bank Indonesia liquidity support to Bank Century.
Zainal Arifin Mochtar, director of Gadjah Mada University’s Center for Anti-Corruption Studies, said that the internal friction was “not that bad”.
He said the KPK, like other law enforcement institutions, might not be free from political intervention.
“That is why we need to continually monitor the KPK’s actions,” he said.
