Corruption court gets a new office
The Jakarta Post | Wed, 02/15/2012 8:34 AM
DENPASAR: Bali Regional Corruption Court moved on Tuesday into its new, Rp 11.4 billion (US$1.26 million) office building in Renon, an upscale administrative and residential area in south Denpasar.
Previously, the court conducted its affairs at the compound of Denpasar District Court.
“Hopefully, the verdicts issued by this court will be as good and authoritative as the physical quality of the court’s building,” Supreme Court chief, Harifin A Tumpa stated before inaugurating the two-story building.
Regional corruption courts were established in provinces across Indonesia following a Constitutional Court ruling in 2006 stating that the corruption court in Jakarta lacked both the legal foundation and jurisdiction to process corruption cases from regions outside Jakarta.
The performances of the regional courts have been criticized recently for being soft on defendants.
Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika warmly welcomed the presence of the corruption court in the province.
“The court will hopefully assist local administrations in implementing good governance,” he said.
The court has tried two cases since its establishment. Its debut case related to the provincial transportation agency’s road signs development project, in which the state suffered a loss of Rp 942 million due to corruption.
