President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono says he is upset with the high level of corruption among tax officers, and has ordered his special unit for development control to monitor reforms in the tax office.
At a briefing of about 300 officials and officers of the Finance Ministry’s directorate general for taxation and directorate general for customs and excise at the Presidential Palace on Wednesday, the President said he had been so upset that he only agreed to the finance minister’s request for him to brief the officers this week.
That is, despite a request for the meeting being filed by then finance minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati before she resigned on June 1 and was replaced by Agus Martowardojo.
“Former finance minister Ibu Sri Mulyani suggested I meet with officials and officers from the tax office following the emergence of the case [involving corrupt tax officer Gayus Tambunan],” Yudhoyono said.
“My answer to her was: ‘You’d first better consolidate [the tax office], because I am still upset. I will only [hold the meeting] when I can see visible improvements in the directorate general for taxation and the directorate general for customs and excise’.”
The President’s resentment stems from the massive tax fraud case allegedly involving Gayus Tambunan that emerged earlier this year. The exposure of the case confirmed the public’s suspicion of rampant corruption plaguing the tax office.
Huge amounts of money were found in bank accounts belonging to Gayus, who had allegedly helped a number of large firms circumvent their tax obligations.
The President said he was partly happy that state revenue from taxes, customs and excise had continued year after year since he assumed office in 2004.
“That’s evidence of output and improved performance,” he said.
He added, however, that he was disappointed with rampant corruption in the two directorate generals.
“There are still tax officers who commit extraordinary, unimaginable crimes. They’re creative, but channel that creativity in the wrong direction,” Yudhoyono said, adding that tax, customs and excise officers had earned the public distrust heaped upon them.
The President then gave “three instructions” for tax and customs and excise offices, including an “immediate stop to all crimes and violations” and to continue internal reforms.
He also told the finance minister to fully support and facilitate the reforms, and the Presidential Work Unit for Development Monitoring and Control (UKP4) chief Kuntoro Mangkusubroto to monitor and follow up his instructions.
Finance Minister Agus, who also delivered a speech at the briefing, said the tax office had completed its first phase of internal reform and was now entering the second phase, which included administrative and regulatory reforms.
Reform in the customs and excise office, meanwhile, covered efforts to improve supervisory functions, improve services through IT application and human resources development, he added.
Agus said the directorate generals were the two biggest contributors of tax revenue, managing to collect Rp 619 trillion (US$68.09 billion), about 70 percent of the state budget, in 2009.
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