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local anticorruption NGO has vowed that it will continue its own investigations into corruption at Denpasar’s Indonesian Arts Institute (ISI), which allegedly implicates its rector I Wayan Rai S, despite the decision of the Bali Prosecutor’s Office to terminate its investigation.

Bali Corruption Watch (BCW) chairman Putu Wirata Dwikora argued that prosecutors had failed to investigate the case thoroughly.

“We will continue our effort to reveal the truth behind the case. We sent a report to the Corruption Eradication Commission [KPK] in Jakarta, asking the commission to take over the case,” he said.

The corruption allegations arose in the aftermath of the 2008 ISI rector’s election, in which the incumbent Rai was defeated by I Nyoman Catra.

With the assistance of senior officials at the Education and Culture Ministry, Rai annulled the result and disbanded the senate of professors responsible for the election.

He formed a new senate filled with his supporters and tasked it with holding a new election. Rai scored a landslide victory in the subsequent election with the blessing of the ministry.

A large number of students and professors protested at Rai’s victory, staging months of rallies and at one point shutting down the rector’s office.

Their opposition won support from local intellectuals, activists and the Bali Legislative Council, which demanded Catra be installed as the new rector, but it failed to stop the ministry installing Rai.

The opposition then brought what they claimed was evidence of corruption at the institute to the Bali Prosecutor’s Office.

The evidence related to the B-Art Program, a Rp 3 billion (US$ 330,000) grant from the ministry aimed at improving the quality of arts study in the institute.

The evidence showed that ISI officials had taken a cut of 30 percent of the funds received by the grant’s recipients. Rai’s opponents allege that Rai condoned or at least knew about the cut.

The investigation resulted in two of Rai’s aides, I Nyoman Sutedja and I Nyoman Sanggra, being tried, convicted and sentenced in August 2010 to four and three-and-a-half years’ imprisonment, respectively.

The court stated that the cut had led to Rp 629.7 million in state losses. During the trial both Sutedja and Sanggra alleged that it was Rai who ordered the cut.

One month later, the prosecutor’s office named Rai a suspect in the graft case. However, a few months later the office issued an SP3 letter (announcing the termination of the investigation of Rai). The office stated that there was not sufficient evidence to prosecute Rai.

Wirata Dwikora believes that Rai had the support of a senior politician in Jakarta.

 “Of course, this kind of support costs a lot of money and the support is the reason why the prosecutor’s office issued an SP3,” he alleged.

Rai denies that he had a powerful backer or that he paid to get the SP3.

“It is not true. I would never do that. The truth is I have never been corrupt. Even if many people say that I am corrupt, they can’t prove it,” Rai said.