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MPR proposes splitting tax office from Finance Ministry
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Tax officer Rafael Alun Trisambodo (center) is surrounded by reporters as he leaves the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) building in South Jakarta on March 1, after complying with the KPK’s summons to clarify the sources of his wealth. (Kompas.com/Kristianto Purnomo)
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mid the controversy surrounding some Rp 300 trillion (US$19.4 billion) in suspicious payments within the Finance Ministry, the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) has proposed creating an independent tax office separate from the ministry that would answer directly to the president.
“This idea of separating the tax office from the Finance Ministry isn’t new. [...] There was a discussion when I was the speaker of the House of Representatives from 2014 to 2019, but [the policy] has yet to materialize,” MPR Speaker Bambang Soesatyo of the Golkar Party said on Saturday.
The idea was one of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s campaign promises in 2014 and was included in the original draft of the tax reform bill of 2015. According to the proposal, the Tax Directorate General was to be spun off into a body called the State Income Agency (BPN).
The senior Golkar politician cited the Financial Services Authority (OJK) and Bank Indonesia (BI) as examples of similar institutional arrangements. Both financial bodies answer directly to the president, who nominates their leaders for the House’s approval.
Bambang’s statement came in support of MRP Deputy Speaker Fadel Muhammad, also from Golkar, who floated the proposal on Friday. Fadel cited declining public trust in the Finance Ministry after the recent controversies as the reason for his proposal.
The furor began after taxman Rafael Alun Trisambodo made headlines for his Rp 56 billion in wealth and lavish lifestyle, which appeared to contradict his relatively low position within the tax office. Rafael’s wealth led to a wider inquiry into officials at the Finance Ministry, with several civil servants from the Customs and Excise Directorate General falling into public’s crosshairs as a result.
But the latest bombshell came last week, after Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Mahfud MD announced that Rp 300 trillion in suspicious payments had been flagged at Finance Ministry, many involving officials from the tax and customs office.
