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.
Biak Numfor regent named suspect in block grant graft case
The Papua Prosecutor's Office has named Biak Numfor Regent YS as a suspect in the misuse of block grants reaching up to Rp 10
Change Size
T
he Papua Prosecutor's Office has named Biak Numfor Regent YS as a suspect in the misuse of block grants reaching up to Rp 10.2 billion (US$842,371) from the Education and Culture Ministry during the 2012 academic year when he served as Youth and Sports Agency head in Supiori.
YS is currently being detained by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) over the allegation of receiving kickbacks from a businessman.
Papua Prosecutor's Office spokesperson Maruli explained that the block grants were allocated to renovate 25 elementary schools in Supiori. Around Rp 250 million to Rp 800 million were transferred directly to the principal's bank account depending on how many classrooms needed to be renovated. The renovation was to be self-managed by the schools themselves without intervention from the government.
However, during his time as Supiori Youth and Sports Agency head, YS issued memos to two staff members to monitor the project, including the disbursement of funds and the appointment of personnel who would have conducted the renovation.
One school, state elementary school SD Mapia, was not renovated because the materials for the renovation were lost when the ship transporting them from Supiori to Mapia island sank. The remaining 24 schools that received the funds did not conduct proper renovation, which led to suspicions of fraud.
YS may face a minimum sentence of four years in prison and a maximum sentence of life if he is proven to have violated the Corruption Law.
