Bibit, Chandra still lead antigraft commission

Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) deputy chairman M. Jasin said Monday that Bibit Samad Rianto and Chandra M. Hamzah would still serve as the commission's despite the fact that they arre facing imminent detention after the Supreme Court has turned down Friday their motion for a review of their bribery case.

"We do not issue a letter to temporarily de-activate them," Jasin said in a press conference at his office.

He added that the commission would wait for the decision by the Attorney General's Office over the Supreme Court decision.

According to Jasin, both Bibit and Chandra will not resign.

"They will stay in their position and defend the people to eradicate corruption. We will wait and see the development of the case," he added.

The two KPK leaders had previously defied the Jakarta High Court’s ruling, which declared the state prosecutors’ decision to suspend their bribery case illegal. The high court’s verdict should have been enough to send Bibit and Chandra to jail pending their trial, but they challenged the ruling by demanding a case review, which many consider a bad precedent for law enforcement in the country.

The Attorney General’s Office dropped bribery and abuse of power charges leveled on the two KPK leaders for sociological reasons. Bribery suspect Anggodo Widjojo then contested the policy in court, insisting that Bibit and Chandra received bribes from him.

Anggodo was sentenced to four years in jail after the court found him guilty of obstructing a KPK investigation and attempting to bribe KPK officials.

Tape recordings of conversation between Anggodo and several senior police officers and prosecutors played in a Constitutional Court hearing revealed that the bribery and abuse of power charges leveled on Bibit and Chandra were orchestrated.

Bibit and Chandra were arrested under the false charges, but were released a few days later following mounting public pressures. (lnd)