Minister Muhaimin mentioned in KPK indictment

Prosecutors of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) have named Manpower and Transmigration Minister Muhaimin Iskandar in their indictment during the trial of three suspects allegedly involved in a corruption case involving the ministry.

The Corruption Court tried on Wednesday the secretary for the ministry’s directorate general for transmigration area development, I Nyoman Suisnaya; the ministry’s head of evaluation and report unit, Dadong Irbarelawan; and PT Alam Jaya Papua businesswoman Dharnawati.

Muhaimin’s name and the names of the ministry’s Directorate General of Transmigration Area Development, Jamaluddien Malik, were read aloud by the prosecutors.

“Suspect I Nyoman Suisnaya, personally or collectively with Dadong Irbarelawan, Abdul Muhaimin Iskandar and Jamaluddien Malik… received gratuity amounting to Rp 2,001,384,328 [US$222,154] from Dharnawati,” the prosecutors said.

Nyoman, Dadong and Dharnawati are charged with bribery and, based on the 2001 antigraft law, could face up to 20 years in prison each.

The KPK, however, has yet to name Muhaimin and Jamaluddien suspects, although their names were mentioned in the indictment.

The high-profile graft case centers on a Rp 500 billion tender for a Manpower and Transmigration Ministry infrastructure development project spanning 19 districts.

Dharnawati won tenders for infrastructure projects in four districts in Papua: Manokwari, Teluk Wondama, Mimika and Keerom. The projects were valued at a total of Rp 73 billion.

According to the indictment, Dharnawati was required to pay a so-called “commitment fee” of 10 percent of the projects’ total value in a meeting with the two ministry officials, Nyoman and Dadong. She paid Rp 2 billion in advance of the Rp 7.3 billion commitment fee.

The meeting was also attended by Sindu Malik, a former tax officer at the Finance Ministry, and Iskandar “Acos” Pasajo, who reportedly acted as a “middle-man” representing the House of Representatives’ budget committee.

Nyoman said after the trial that the money had gone to the budget committee members through their “middlemen”.

“As far as I know, [the 10 percent commitment fee] was for the House budget committee,” he said.

On Aug. 25, the KPK arrested Dharnawati, Nyoman and Dadong almost simultaneously after she was caught red-handed handing over the fee amounting to Rp 1.5 billion, while the remaining 500 million was to be disbursed later. The money was found by KPK investigators in a cardboard box in a car parked at the ministry’s office in Kalibata, South Jakarta.

The indictment said Muhammad Fauzi, who was believed to be Muhaimin’s assistant, had planned to take the money to give to his boss. Fauzi, however, came late and was not present when the hand-over took place.

Muhaimin, who is also the National Awakening Party (PKB) chairman, has repeatedly said that he is innocent in the case, saying he “never gave any order to receive any bribes”.

KPK spokesman Johan Budi told The Jakarta Post that the indictment was based on the suspects’ testimonies, stating that the antigraft body would possibly name Muhaimin and Jamaluddien suspects in the future if new evidence was revealed during the current trial.

“If there is new evidence, we could present Pak Muhaimin in court as a suspect,” he said. (sat)