TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Bandung mayor detained in bribery case
Equality for midwives: Hundreds of midwives â employed under the non-permanent assignment program (PTT) â protest in front of the Presidential Palace in Central Jakarta on Monday
Change Size
E
span class="inline inline-center">Equality for midwives: Hundreds of midwives ' employed under the non-permanent assignment program (PTT) ' protest in front of the Presidential Palace in Central Jakarta on Monday. The midwives called on President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to revise a 2000 Presidential Decree on the promotion of midwives under the PTT program to become civil servants. Under the decree, midwives on the PTT program are only able to work for a two-term period or nine years. JP/P J Leo
The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) finally detained Bandung Mayor Dada Rosada on Monday after questioning him more than 10 times about his alleged involvement in the bribery of an anti-corruption judge.
KPK spokesperson Johan Budi said that Dada, a Democratic Party politician, had been charged with masterminding the bribery, which involved Bandung antigraft judge Setyabudi Tejocahyono, who was overseeing the trial of seven of Dada's subordinates accused of misappropriating Rp 40 billion (US$4 million) in social aid package funds.
'Dada will be detained at the Cipinang penitentiary in East Jakarta for the next 20 days,' he told a press conference at the KPK's headquarters in Kuningan, South Jakarta.
Dada wore a KPK detainee jacket when he exited the headquarters following the questioning. He chose to remain silent when reporters bombarded him with questions.
Dada's lawyer, Abidin, said that his client had completely understood and accepted the fact that he had to be detained.
Dada was implicated in the case after former Bandung administration secretary Edi Siswadi testified that he had been instructed by Dada to collect Rp 150 million in cash that would later be given to Setyabudi.
The bribe was allegedly intended for the judge so that he would not implicate Dada and other Bandung administration staff members in the social aid package funds case.
After allegedly accepting the bribe, Setyabudi, who previously served as Tanjung Pinang district court head in the Riau Islands, gave lenient sentences to the seven Bandung administration officials implicated in the case, sentencing them each to one year prison terms for their roles.
It was later revealed in the indictment of Setyabudi that he had channeled some of the bribe money to other judges, identified as Ramlan Comel, Djodjo Djohari and Bandung district court head Singgih Budi Prakoso.
Johan said that the KPK would dig deeper using information revealed in Setyabudi's indictment to determine whether there were other parties involved in the case.
Abidin, meanwhile, said that Dada had never instructed his subordinates to collect money as a bribe to Setyabudi. 'The one who asked for the money was just Toto [Hutagalung, a close friend of Dada's also involved in the case], that's it. Dada had never agreed to give money to Toto,' he said.
Besides detaining Dada, the KPK also questioned several witnesses in the case on Monday, including Bandung secretary Yosi Irianto,
Bandung Transportation Agency head Ricky Gustiadi and Bandung Education Agency head Dandan Riza Wardana.
The detention of Dada is likely to be followed soon by that of other former Democratic Party members, specifically, former youth and sports minister Andi Alfian Mallarangeng and former Democratic Party chairman Anas Urbaningrum.
Andi and Anas, both suspects in the Hambalang sports complex graft case, are expected to be detained this week or next week, as the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) had entered the final stage of its second audit on the Hambalang project.
'Last week BPK officials paid us a visit and informed us that the audit had entered the final stage,' KPK chairman Abraham Samad said late Sunday.
Johan said that the meeting between the BPK and the KPK had focused on the calculation of state losses incurred because of the graft-ridden project. 'During the discussion, the BPK said that it would soon finish calculating the state's losses,' he said.
