T

he Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) said on Sunday that it was hopeful that the Jakarta Corruption Court on Monday would sentence graft and money laundering defendant former Constitutional Court Akil Mochtar to life in prison as demanded by its prosecutors.

KPK deputy chairman Bambang Widjojanto said that he was confident that the evidence presented would convince the panel of judges that Akil deserved life in prison, given that he was head of the country'€™s highest judiciary institution.

'€œThe KPK hopes that the court'€™s ruling will honor the country'€™s corruption eradication efforts,'€ Bambang told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.

With regard to Akil'€™s accusation in his defense plea that the sentence demand was politically motivated, Bambang said he did not under estimate the panel of judges'€™ ability to sort out what arguments were related to the case and which were not.

Akil, in his defense statement, lambasted the KPK'€™s refusal to acknowledge his past good deeds.

'€œLet the panel of judges examine the defense plea. KPK prosecutors, based on Akil'€™s almost four-month trial, found no mitigating factors in his offenses,'€ Bambang said.

Akil, who was a Golkar Party lawmaker from 1998-2009, was elected as a Constitutional Court justice in 2008 before assuming the top job in April 2013, just six months before he was arrested by the KPK.

Meanwhile, Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) researcher Emerson Yuntho said Sunday that Akil'€™s past good deeds paled in comparison to his wrongdoings.

'€œWe urge the panel of judges to approve the prosecutors'€™ life sentence demand for Akil. The judges should not heed Akil'€™s defense as he has tainted the country'€™s democracy, especially democratic life in a number of regions in Indonesia,'€ Emerson said.

Separately, Akil'€™s lawyer, Adardam Achyar said on Sunday that he had called on the judges to be lenient '€œfor the sake of justice'€.

'€œOur preparation is only prayers. We hope as this is Ramadhan, God will open His door for Akil to receive justice in his case,'€ Adardam said.

Akil was arrested in his official residence in October last year accepting bribes in relation to a local election dispute in Gunung Mas regency in Central Kalimantan. Later the KPK found that Akil had also accepted bribes in relation to eight other local election disputes.

Akil allegedly collected Rp 57 billion (US$4.73 million) in bribes from 10 local election disputes, of which he attached a price tag of between Rp 500 million and Rp 20 billion.

He also laundered a total of Rp 180 billion: Rp 160 billion during his term at the court and Rp 20 billion when he was serving as a member of the House of Representatives representing the Golkar Party.

KPK prosecutors also wanted the judges to strip Akil of his political right to run for public office.

The case has implicated a number of senior officials, lawmakers, lawyers and businesspeople who acted as middlemen, including suspended Banten governor Ratu Atut Chosiyah and her brother, Tubagus Chaeri '€œWawan'€ Wardana, Golkar Party politician Chairun Nisa and lawyer Susi Tur Andayani.