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More suspects may be named in dwelling time case
Partogi Pangaribuan - kemendag dot go dot idThe Jakarta Police said on Saturday that more individuals could be named suspects in a graft case that is thought to have caused long dwelling times at Tanjung Priok Port in North Jakarta
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Partogi Pangaribuan - kemendag dot go dot id
The Jakarta Police said on Saturday that more individuals could be named suspects in a graft case that is thought to have caused long dwelling times at Tanjung Priok Port in North Jakarta.
Following the detention of the Trade Ministry's non-active director general of foreign trade, Partogi Pangaribuan, on Friday evening after 12 hours of questioning as one of the latest suspects in the case, Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Mohammad Iqbal said that investigators had on Saturday brought in by force a key witness for questioning, a woman identified only as L.
Iqbal said the witness was thought to have close relations with one of the four suspects in the case. '[L] is from outside [of the Trade Ministry] and we strongly suspect she is connected to this case,' he said.
Although Iqbal declined to disclose L's alleged role in the case, he said that she could also be named a suspect.
So far, the Jakarta Police have named four suspects in the case: contract worker MU, middleman ME, ministerial official working under the director general of foreign trade Imam Aryanta and Partogi, who was detained after he admitted that US$40,000 found during a raid on the Trade Ministry was his.
Although Imam remains free, Iqbal confirmed that the Jakarta Police would detain him once he returned from a working trip abroad.
Previously, Jakarta Police chief Insp. Gen. Tito Karnavian said investigators started working on the case after President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo lashed out at the lengthy dwelling time at Tanjung Priok Port during an inspection of the Indonesia Port Corporation (IPC) in June.
Dwelling time indicates the average length of time a container spends in a seaport terminal. A shorter dwelling time means a more efficient shipment procedure and lower logistical costs.
Tito said that after a month monitoring the area, the police discovered that there were irregularities at the permit pre-clearance stage in the one-stop integrated service office at the port, which could have resulted from the absence of officials from ministries and institutions, including the Trade Ministry.
Many at the port have taken advantage of the absence of officials, with some believed to have extorted money from companies in return for expedited service.
Meanwhile, the Transportation Ministry's director of naval traffic, Wahyu Widayat, said that Tanjung Priok Port was vulnerable to graft as the one-stop integrated service office lacked leadership among the 18 institutions that operated there.
As a solution, Wahyu called for the strengthening of the Transportation Ministry's authority so that the one-stop integrated service office could be organized in a way that would minimize the opportunity to commit graft.
'Give [the Trade Ministry] the authority to give recommendations or sanctions against institutions [under the one-stop integrated service] that fail to follow the rules,' he said.
Separately, Indonesian National Shipowners Association (INSA) head Carmelita Hartoto called for better synergy among agencies handling work at the port.
She also called for the highest authority be given to the Transportation Ministry to handle jobs at the port on a daily basis.
'[INSA] members have long taken advantaged of [during the pre-clearance stage] and it doesn't just affect trade but also agriculture and industry,' she said.
