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Police commonly pocket fees for free services: Ombudsman
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A police office (tribunnews.com/File)
P
olice officers have been abusing their power to supplement their income when serving citizens at the Police Integrated Service Centers (SPKT), according to the Ombudsman.
Ombudsman commissioner Adrianus Meliala said on Friday that some officers did not make it clear that services at the SPKT were free of charge, while the way they handled the services tended to make citizens feel pressured to give the officers some money.
“There can be maladministration there. For example, when applicants at the center asked the officers whether there were any charges when reporting stolen goods, some officers responded, 'as much as you are willing [to pay],’” Adrianus said during a press conference on the Ombudsman’s investigation into SPKT services in Jakarta.
The Ombudsman investigated SPKT services at 11 police district and subdistrict offices in Jakarta between April 2017 and April 2018.
Adrianus said the Ombudsman also found that the services at the centers were not uniform across police offices, as they should be according to Law No. 25/2009 on public services.
He said the police had also failed to properly inform the public about the integrated service centers.
Jakarta Police regional monitoring inspector Sr. Comr. Komarul Zaman said the police would look into the Ombudsman's findings and reprimand any officers caught charging people illegally.
“We will also keep informing the public not to give any money to our officers,” Komarul said. (ami)
