T

he Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) on Monday questioned United Development Party (PPP) politician Reni Marlinawati in its investigation into alleged irregularities surrounding the 2012-2013 haj program at the PPP-led Religious Affairs Ministry.

After the questioning, Reni, who currently serves as a member of House of Representatives'€™ Commission X overseeing sports, acknowledged that she joined graft suspect former religious affairs minister Suryadharma Ali'€™s haj entourage to Saudi Arabia, a decision the KPK deems suspect.

Suryadharma, who is PPP chairman, has been accused of improperly using state funds to fly himself and dozens of associates '€” including relatives, colleagues from the ministry and members of the House '€” to Saudi Arabia using names falsely registered as Indonesian Haj Organizing Committee (PPIH) representatives.

'€œIt was true [that I joined the entourage], but I paid for the trip using my own money, not state money. I registered for the haj in 2010, but at that time I could not go anyway. I only had the chance to do the haj in 2012,'€ Reni told reporters at the KPK headquarters after her questioning on Monday.

'€œI did not use a single penny of state money during the trip,'€ she said.

Each pilgrim is required to pay a deposit of Rp 25 million (US$2,160) to have his or her name placed on a waiting list for the planned trip to Mecca. A prospective pilgrim has to wait for years to get chosen for the haj quota due to the large number of people registered for it every year.

Currently, there are nearly 2 million people on the waiting list. Last year only 168,800 people were allowed to go to Mecca for the haj.

Asked whether Suryadharma had helped her to get a haj seat more easily due their PPP-linked relationship, she did not answer.

'€œI don'€™t know about it. I just had a chance to do the haj in 2012,'€ Reni said, refusing to disclose how much money she had paid for the trip.

She said she made the haj pilgrimage with her husband.

'€œ[Also] together with a number of [PPP] fellows,'€ she added. She did not disclose the name of the PPP politicians.

KPK spokesman Johan Budi said on Monday that the KPK could prosecute all members of the '€œfree'€ haj entourage.

'€œAs long as KPK investigators find strong evidence, anyone could be prosecuted in the case. However, we will validate all information that we got from the questioning in the first place,'€ Johan told reporters at the KPK headquarters.

'€œWe are still developing the case.'€

On Wednesday last week, the KPK also interrogated Suryadharma'€™s wife, Wardhatul Asriah, as well as his son-in-law, Rendhika Deniardy Harsono, for alleged involvement in the illegal haj transportation scheme.

The Religious Affairs Ministry has long been perceived as corrupt, with the KPK naming it the most corrupt institution of the 22 government agencies it surveyed in 2011.

The current graft case follows the sentencing by the Jakarta Corruption Court of a number of ministry officials for their roles in a graft case involving the procurement of Korans by the ministry last year.

Suryadharma resigned from his post three days after he was named a suspect in the haj graft case in May 22 and his position was succeeded by another PPP politician, Lukman Hakim Saifuddin.

According to the KPK'€™s records, Suryadharma'€™s total wealth in 2009 was Rp 17 billion, but that figure increased to Rp 24 billion in 2012, three years after he became religious affairs minister.

Earlier in January, the KPK announced that it would focus its investigation on the procurement of goods and services in the haj pilgrimage program during the 2012-2013 period.

KPK deputy chairman Bambang Widjojanto emphasized that the antigraft body had also investigated the management of the haj pilgrimage fund during the 2012-2013 period and the giving of facilities to go on the haj to individuals who were not qualified for them according to existing regulations.