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eaders of the House of Representatives have criticized the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) for bringing armed members of the National Police'€™s Mobile Brigade (Brimob) along when raiding the offices of three lawmakers on Friday.

The House said that it respected the KPK'€™s right to conduct the raid but the use of Brimob members equipped with weapons to guard Friday'€™s raid had besmirched the good image of the House as a safe place.

Benny K. Harman of the Democratic Party, whose former party chairman Anas Urbaningrum was arrested by the KPK in 2014, said that it was unnecessary for the Brimob members to be armed when guarding the search.

'€œThe legislature is part of the state'€™s institutions, they don'€™t need to use weapons on us,'€ Benny said, adding that the antigraft body should learn how to respect the House, which has seen dozens of its lawmakers arrested after allegedly being caught red-handed accepting bribes from businessmen by the KPK.

After arresting Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) politician Damayanti Wisnu Putranti on bribery allegations on Wednesday night, KPK investigators on Friday raided the offices of lawmakers Budi Supriyanto of the Golkar Party and Yudi Widiana of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), whose former chairman Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq was also prosecuted for bribery by the KPK in 2013.

Damayanti'€™s office was also scrutinized during the operation.

Benny said that as a law enforcement body, the KPK was authorized to conduct the raid, but the use of weapons was not acceptable as guns were the symbol of an authoritarian regime.

After holding a meeting on Monday, House leaders decided to summons KPK commissioners and National Police chief Gen. Badrodin Haiti to seek clarification over the use of armed Brimob officers during Friday'€™s raid.

Supratman Andi Agtas of the Gerindra Party also voiced similar disapproval, saying that the KPK should review its standard operation procedures for carrying out raids, but he did not know whether the use of weapons violated the law.

'€œAll I know is there was something wrong with the way they carried out the raid,'€ said the chairman of the House'€™s Legislation Body [Baleg] and member of House Commission III overseeing legal affairs.

According to him, House Deputy Speaker Fahri Hamzah of PKS, who was involved in a quarrel with KPK investigators on Friday, was just fulfilling his duty to protect the House'€™s image when he protested the use of weapons.

Mahfudz Siddiq of PKS said that House leaders and Commission III might summons related parties '€” Fahri, Brimob and the KPK '€” to resolve the matter.

'€œWhat Fahri did was right, showing his responsibility as the House'€™s deputy chairman. It would be ridiculous if he did not do that,'€ Mahfudz said.

As far as he had seen, he said, previous raids on the House did not see such use of weapons by the KPK.

Responding to the House'€™s criticism, the KPK said that it had conducted the raid in line with existing regulations, and that KPK commissioners would meet with House leaders to provide clarification should it be deemed necessary.

'€œWe are ready to visit the House,'€ KPK spokeswoman Yuyuk Andriati said on Monday.

Yuyuk said that Brimob personnel accompanying KPK investigators on a raid were always equipped with weapons as mandated by Brimob'€™s operating procedures, adding that the KPK did not want to give the impression of giving special treatment to the House by asking that the Brimob personnel go into the House unarmed.

'€œThe raid was conducted just like any other raid,'€ Yuyuk added.
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