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View all search resultsBasaria seeks to end conflict between KPK and police
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Insp. Gen. Basaria Panjaitan laughs as she is interviewed by members of House of Representatives Commission III in the final interview in her bid to become a commissioner with the Corruption Eradication Commission in Jakarta on Dec. 14. (tribunnews.com/Irwan Rismawan) (tribunnews.com/Irwan Rismawan)
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span class="caption">Insp. Gen. Basaria Panjaitan laughs as she is interviewed by members of House of Representatives Commission III in the final interview in her bid to become a commissioner with the Corruption Eradication Commission in Jakarta on Dec. 14. (tribunnews.com/Irwan Rismawan)
Newly elected commissioner of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) Insp. Gen. Basaria Panjaitan has expressed the hope that the KPK and the National Police will closely cooperate in fighting corruption and end their rivalry in dealing with corruption cases.
She said in Jakarta on Monday that the anticorruption body had a supervisory function over other law enforcement institutions ' particularly the National Police and the Attorney General's Office and therefore, the KPK had to optimally implement that function.
'It would be better if all the work could be implemented based on a certain agreement and [we don't] attack each other so that we produce maximum results,' Basaria said as reported by kompas.com.
Basaria, one of the five KPK commissioners who were inaugurated by President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo on Monday, is a high-ranking police officer. The four other commissioners are Agus Rahardjo (KPK chairman), Alexander Marwata Laode Muhammad Syarif and Saut Situmorang.
House of Representatives Commission III, which oversees legal affairs, was criticized for nixing the favorite candidates such as former KPK spokesman Johan Budi and former KPK commissioner Busyro Muqoddas. Meanwhile, anticorruption activists have questioned the credibility of the elected commissioners, with the exception of Agus.
According to Basaria, the police may transfer corruption cases to the KPK if police investigators cannot investigate the cases properly. However, she added, the transfer of cases should not cause conflict between the two institutions.
In recent years, the police and KPK have been involved in a number of conflicts, particularly after the KPK investigated cases that involved police personnel. The most recent conflict started when the KPK named Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan a graft suspect shortly after he was nominated to become National Police chief.
Following the KPK's move, the police named then KPK chairman Abraham Samad, then KPK commissioner Bambang Widjojanto and KPK investigator and former police officer Novel Baswedan suspects in crimes. Novel's case has been transferred to Bengkulu's prosecutor's office.
'Whatever the KPK and other law enforcement institutions do should be for the welfare and improvement of the people,' said Basaria.
She denied that her bid to become a KPK commissioner was to protect police officers from KPK investigation. She insisted her election was expected to minimize conflict between the two institutions. 'Don't always think negatively, think positively first so that we can move forward,' she said. (bbn)
