House of Representatives politician Agun Gunandjar Sudarsa admitted in a hearing on Monday that he had accepted money from former Home Ministry official Irman, who has been convicted in the e-ID graft case.

The Golkar Party politician said the money he received was payment for his participation in a discussion.

Agun, who now heads the House’s special committee for an inquiry against the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), previously denied any involvement in the e-ID case.

In the hearing, Agun said he only received Rp 5 million (US$368) from Irman.

“As a lawmaker, I often get invited as an interviewee in television programs,” Agun testified during the hearing of businessman Andi Agustinus, aka Andi Narogong, a defendant in the e-ID case, at the Jakarta Corruption Court.

It was revealed during the hearing that the money was part of $73,500 Irman had given to a former Home Ministry senior official, Suciati, to be converted into rupiah.

At the end of the hearing, Agun asserted he did not accept money stolen from funds earmarked for the e-ID project.

Agun’s name was mentioned in KPK prosecutors' indictment of Irman and former Home Minister official Sugiharto, which detailed that the Golkar politician had received $1,000, which was taken from the Rp 5.9 trillion procurement budget, during his term as the House's budget committee member and working in Commission II, which oversees home affairs. (ebf)