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n a country rated by the Political and Economic Risk Consultancy (PERC) as this year’s most corrupt among 16 Asia-Pacific states, state officials committed to abstinence from shady deals stand out like shining beacons.

The panel of judges for the 2010 Bung Hatta Anti-Corruption Award recognized such qualities in Yogyakarta municipal administration under Mayor Herry Zudianto and Surakarta under Mayor Joko Widodo. The pair, judges said, ruled with distinction and were thus named winners of this year’s award. An award ceremony is set to be held on Thursday.

The Jakarta Post’s Arghea Desafti Hapsari talked with the head of the panel of judges for the award, Betti S. Alisjahbana, to get a behind-the-scenes view of the awards.

Question: Why award people with the Bung Hatta Anti-Corruption Award?

Answer: Here, in the organization, we feel that corruption has been a major challenge in Indonesia and that it is so systemic that takes an extraordinary effort for one to remain clean and to go even further and influence our surroundings to also stay clean from corruption.

We hope this award serves as inspiration for people to take part in the fight against corruption. We hope that in the future there will be more evangelists in the fight against corruption in this country.

What was behind the decision to name the two mayors as winners for this year’s award?

The two have unquestionable integrity. Each has his own style of leadership and has achieved significant impacts and results.

Joko Widodo is widely known to be very close to his community. He leads a simple life and has a clear vision for his region. He regularly visits the local community, and has maintained good relations with street vendors and pedicab drivers in Surakarta.

Joko has also been successful in making efficient use of the regional budget. He built 13 traditional markets, a city park and pedestrian lanes. One of Joko’s most acclaimed achievements was when he relocated 989 street vendors with no resistance or violence.

The Yogyakarta municipal administration under the leadership of Mayor Herry Zudianto has succeeded in improving public services by establishing a one-stop service center, cutting down unnecessary bureaucracy and eliminating illegal levies.

Another of Herry’s breakthroughs was the establishment of the UPIK, Yogyakarta’s information and complaints center, which is a service that is available online. This e-government scheme has helped to ensure that the administration is transparent and accountable.

These efforts saw Yogyakarta top the Corruption Perception Index issued by the Transparency International Indonesia in 2008.

Looking at this year’s winners, would you say the fight against corruption is better carried out and led by someone in a high position?

Yes, I do think that’s true. A leader has a wide scope for impact, and the higher the position, the wider this impact is. It is most fascinating to see there are people who go into a system that is not ideal, but then bring changes that in turn alter the whole system for the better.

How do you see this phenomena in relation to regional autonomy issues?

With Joko Widodo and Herry Zudianto setting an example, we can see the central government’s regional autonomy policy can in fact produce high-quality leaders, despite the fact that its implementation may not be as good in many other regions.

Both Joko and Herry were re-elected. Joko won more than 90 percent of votes and did not have to spend huge amount of money for his campaign. His works tell it all, and his community believe in him. This shows that good governance sells.