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eefgate and other scandals rage on. The cases highlighted magic numbers including 60, 45 and 17. Sixty bank accounts reportedly held by a lowly police officer assigned to Sorong, the town of the 'Bird's Head' in West Papua, which turned out to be the most lucrative posting a policeman or soldier could ever wish for.

Illegal logging is one source of revenue, smuggled fuel another, resulting in the accounts of Adj. First Insp. Labora Sitorus amassing over Rp 1 trillion (US$102,300). Suspicions reached his superiors who could not have been entirely in the dark about his apparently highly dilligent operations.

The figure of 45 was the latest number of women who reportedly received cash and other gifts from graft suspect Ahmad Fathanah in Beefgate, the beef import graft case linked to the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) and its former chairman Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq.

The trial at the corruption court is expected to reveal the money flow which included the purchase of cars, jewelry and other gifts, allegedly bought with the billions of rupiah the details of which emerged in a telephone tap played to the court, revealing bribes and commissions from a planned deal between the Agriculture Ministry and the beef importer, PT Indoguna Utama.

The top number of the week was Sweet 17 ' the initially reported age of a girl allegedly courted by then PKS chief
Luthfi, who is married. The Press Council slammed the media for overtly exposing a minor. Whether she was 17 or 19, the image of the PKS continued to slide down the drain while its leaders rushed to assess the scandal's impact on the rank and file.

All the new data was revealed in the trials at the corruption court and by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), for which the public has shown continuous support despite the PKS' defensive reactions. Yes, all parties might be corrupt, KPK officials said, but the current swift proceedings against the PKS were because the bribery attempts were caught red-handed. So for now politicians of other parties can enjoy the show ' until their own turn comes.

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Tuesday witnessed the swearing-in ceremony of the new Finance Minister Chatib Basri, following the usual shilly-shallying by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. Chatib promised to put an end to the image that the ministry was a budget 'stopper', after his predecessor Agus Martowardojo was resented for withholding suspicious budgets.

Apart from the KPK, the new face of the ministry also brings hope, though we will warily watch, again, the resistance to any well-intentioned newcomer to the Cabinet, from within his own ministry and beyond.

Whether Chatib can coax his boss into really ending the fuel subsidies, currently causing hemorrhaging in the budget, is the main question as he has said the fuel price will be increased in June, which, it is estimated, will save the state coffers some Rp 30 trillion. As the economist was chosen for his impartiality in politics, the subsidies will surely be his priority ' even if the fasting month is approaching in July, a bad time to irk people.

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City residents continue to pin hopes on Governor Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo. This week's issues included the halting attempts at the new free health services. Sixteen hospitals withdrew, citing likely financial losses, a few days later 14 said they would return to the scheme; a wise image-saving measure, despite their valid complaints about the burden on hospital staff and medicine stocks.

'We can discuss the issues,' said Jokowi.

His gesture, showing a persistently persuasive style, was also evident in his luncheon with representatives of the community around the Pluit dam in North Jakarta, who have resisted orders to move out. After long periods of leaders-know-it-all, the more humble stance of Jokowi has been welcomed, even if it only proves he is the better diplomat and gets his way at the end of the day.

'Yes, this is state-owned land,' residents acknowledged, they said they were only hoping that the government would pay attention to their needs.

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Our most-viewed news items on the website included the one on an emergency door falling off a Sriwijaya Air aircraft. Naturally this caught readers' attention as the flying middle class grows ever larger with so many options among the budget airlines.

The report came just on the heels of the investigation into the Lion Air crash in April, which revealed that the co-pilot of the Boeing 737 was having difficulty seeing the runway before the plane plunged into the sea off Denpasar ' barely a month after the CEO was pictured with French President Francois Hollande after purchasing 234 new Airbus planes.

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In the heart of Papua's mineral riches, the bodies of 28 miners were finally recovered from a tunnel which collapsed on May 14. The Freeport management is still investigating the causes of the collapse at a training site that is reported to have shown no prior signs of danger.

The accident in which 10 other workers sustained injuries should lead to tighter scrutiny regarding workers' safety around the Grasberg mine.

' Ati Nurbaiti