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View all search resultsConviction of ex-executives of state ferry operator stir debate
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Then-state-owned ferry operator ASDP Indonesia Ferry CEO Ira Puspadewi speaks to the press on Feb. 6, 2020.
(JP/Riza Roidila Mufti)
T
he convictions of former top officials of state-owned ferry operator PT ASDP Indonesia Ferry and their subsequent pardons have prompted a public debate over whether bad business decisions that incur state losses should be subject to corruption investigations and trials.
Ira Puspadewi, ASDP president director serving from 2017 to 2024, and two former directors were sentenced to prison on Nov. 20 for corruption stemming from their decisions to collaborate with and eventually acquire a private ferry operator several years ago. The Jakarta Corruption Court concluded that they were guilty of causing Rp 1.25 trillion (US$75 million) in state losses from overvalued ships previously owned by the private company, as well as its debt, despite finding no evidence that they had personal enriched themselves.
The sentence has since sparked public debate, with critics saying that the ruling unfairly punished executives of companies for decisions they made in good faith and warning that it could discourage risk-taking and innovation in state-owned enterprises.
The court and the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), which investigated and brought the case to court, have rejected allegations of criminalizing policy decisions, saying evidence had confirmed unlawful conduct during the acquisition process.
Read also: Presidential pardons put KPK’s credibility in question
But the court’s ruling itself was not unanimous, with Judge Sunoto dissenting from the majority of two. He said the acquisition was a business decision protected under the principle of business judgment rather than criminal conduct.
Sunoto warned that convicting the three ASDP executives would “harm national interests,” noting that the directors of state-owned companies might be more hesitant to take risky business decisions, as they could be criminalized for outcomes deemed not optimal.
