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Law revision aims to strengthen KPK, Jokowi says
Show of support: President Joko âJokowiâ Widodo is pictured at a recent event
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Show of support: President Joko âJokowiâ Widodo is pictured at a recent event. He has given his assurances that the possible revision of Law No. 30/2002 on the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) would not be aimed at weakening the antigraft body. (thejakartapost.com/Wienda Parwitasari) (KPK) would not be aimed at weakening the antigraft body. (thejakartapost.com/Wienda Parwitasari)
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span class="inline inline-center">Show of support: President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo is pictured at a recent event. He has given his assurances that the possible revision of Law No. 30/2002 on the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) would not be aimed at weakening the antigraft body. (thejakartapost.com/Wienda Parwitasari)
President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo said on Wednesday that the revision of Law No. 30/2002 on the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), which was included on the priority deliberation list of the 2016 National Legislation Program (Prolegnas), was aimed at improving the performance of the antigraft body.
'The spirit of the KPK Law revision is to strengthen the commission, instead of weakening it,' he told journalists at a press conference held at Halim Perdanakusuma Air Force Base in East Jakarta after arriving from the COP21 UN Climate Conference in Paris, France.
Jokowi further asserted that the KPK Law revision was the initiative of the House of Representatives. 'Thus, please ask the people,' the President said when asked about the government's commitments to the law revision.
President Jokowi further said that law experts, academics and antigraft activists were involved in the deliberation of the KPK Law draft revision.
Several Cabinet ministers, including Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Rizal Ramli, State Secretary Pratikno, National Development Planning Minister Sofyan Djalil, Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung and Presidential chief of staff Teten Masduki accompanied President Jokowi at the press conference.
Separately, House Deputy Speaker Fahri Hamzah said on Wednesday that if President Jokowi agreed to revise the 2002 KPK Law, he should issue a Presidential mandate (Ampres) on the law revision.
'Please send us the Presidential mandate,' the lawmaker said at the House complex in Senayan, Central Jakarta.
Fahri said it would be impossible for the House to deliberate the KPK Law draft revision without a Presidential mandate.
The government, through Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laoly, and the House legislation council (Baleg) agreed to include the KPK Law revision on the priority deliberation list for the Prolegnas at a meeting on Nov. 27.
At the meeting, the KPK Law revision, which was first initiated by the government, was approved to become the House's initiative.
Commenting on the decision, Baleg deputy chief Firman Subagyo gave his assurances that the House and the government were both working for the sake of national interests.
Fahri said a draft bill would never become law if the President was not involved in its deliberation. 'This KPK Law draft revision will never become law if there is no Ampres. The key now lies in the President's approval,' said Fahri, adding that Indonesia applied a presidential system, not a parliamentary system. (ebf)(+)
