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KPK takes PAL officials in for questioning
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Defense talks: State shipbuilder PT PAL Indonesia president director Firmansyah Arifin (left) and Navy chief of staff Adm. Ade Supandi (right) talk ahead of the dispatch of a strategic sealift vessel (SSV) ordered by the Philippine navy in a ceremony attended by Vice President Jusuf Kalla in Ujung, Surabaya, on May 8, 2016. (JP/Wahyoe Boediwardhana)
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orruption Eradication Corruption (KPK) investigators have taken state shipbuilder PT PAL Indonesia president director Firmansyah Arifin in for questioning. It is suspected he will be questioned in relation to a bribery case revolving around warship procurement.
Firmansyah was reportedly picked up from the company’s headquarters in Surabaya, East Java, at around 11 p.m. local time on Thursday. Accompanied by PAL Indonesia corporate secretary Elly Dwiratmanto, Firmansyah was seen entering one of three KPK investigator vehicles.
It is highly suspected the KPK’s move to take Firmansyah and Elly in for questioning is connected to a recent operation in which antigraft personnel arrested PAL officials on allegations of bribery in relation to the sale of warships produced by the company for the Philippines.
According to sources who wish to remain anonymous, the PAL officials caught in the KPK operation at noon on Thursday were from the finance department.
“I don’t know where he [Firmansyah] was taken to or for what purpose. As of this morning, we have not yet received any information. Once we get information, we will inform you as soon as possible,” PAL Indonesia spokesperson Bayu Wicaksono told The Jakarta Post on Friday.
As earlier reported, PAL Indonesia had won a tender for the construction of two strategic sealift vessels (SSV) worth Rp 1.1 trillion (US$82.57 million) for the Philippine navy. The first warship was delivered to the Philippines in May 2016, while the second vessel is scheduled to be delivered in April. (ebf)
