He said civil servants both in central and regional administrations should be at the forefront of the movement to comply with calls made by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to reject gifts.

“I ask all civil servants to obey the KPK’s call to refuse gifts,” he said after a meeting Tuesday with
legislators.

The KPK has issued a memo to public officials to reject gifts during the Idul Fitri holiday since they could be classified as gratuities.

The 2001 Anticorruption Law bans state officials from receiving gratuities, which includes money and other items. An article in the law states that a gratuity could be deemed bribery if it was related to the job. The law says officials could accept gifts if they reported the gift to the KPK.

KPK deputy chairman for prevention M. Jasin has also campaigned against accepting gifts during a recent visit to the Makassar and Jakarta governors.

Jasin acknowledged the KPK could not prohibit public officials from accepting gifts as the practice had become a tradition in the country.

KPK deputy chairman Haryono Umar said officials who received gifts had to disclose this to the KPK within 30 days or face possible corruption charges.

The anticorruption law stipulates those found guilty of graft could be sentenced to at least four years in prison and pay Rp 200 million (US$22,200) in fines.

The KPK said it would encourage officials to hand the gifts to their subordinates.

To set an example, the KPK presented gift packs, valued at Rp 150,000 each, to its staff, including janitors, security officers, gofers and drivers, during the Idul Fitri holidays in 2008.

State-Owned Enterprises Minister Mustafa Abubakar has also warned officials at his ministry against accepting gifts, saying he was prepared to punish violators.

A number of state-owned companies such as oil and gas firm PT Pertamina, electricity monopoly PT PLN, Bank Mandiri and Bank Negara Indonesia (BNI) launched ads to announce that their officials would not accept gifts during Idul Fitri.

Coordinating Public Welfare Minister Agung Laksono said gifts could be accepted if they were intended only for friendship.

“What is not allowed is if the gifts are given in order to facilitate business or seek new positions [in office],” he said.

A number of local administrations have issued calls on accepting gifts.

South Sulawesi Governor Syahrul Yasin Limpo said he had long refrained from accepting gifts during the Idul Fitri holidays.

“I stopped accepting gifts a long time ago, but I regularly hand out gifts to lower-ranking government officials,” Syahrul was quoted as saying by Antara news agency.

Surabaya Mayor Bambang Dwi Hartono said he also prohibited his officials from accepting gifts, saying that they were gratuities.

The South Sumatra administration, however, continues to allow officials and civil servants to accept gifts worth less than Rp 1 million.

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