TheJakartaPost

Please Update your browser

Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.

Jakarta Post

Former PPP leader denies involvement in bribery case

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) on Friday conducted their first interrogation of former United Development Party (PPP) chairman Muhammad Romahurmuziy, after naming him a suspect in a bribery case centering on the promotion process at the Religious Affairs Ministry

The Jakarta Post
Jakarta
Sat, March 23, 2019

Share This Article

Change Size

Former PPP leader denies involvement in bribery case

T

span>The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) on Friday conducted their first interrogation of former United Development Party (PPP) chairman Muhammad Romahurmuziy, after naming him a suspect in a bribery case centering on the promotion process at the Religious Affairs Ministry.

Romahurmuziy was unable to attend an interrogation scheduled for Thursday due to health reasons. He previously complained about the ventilation in the detention center, which made it difficult for him to sleep for
several days.

KPK spokesperson Febri Diansyah said that doctors had checked Romahurmuziy’s health condition, stating that his health was actually “relatively good”.

“We have taken his voice sample for our further investigation and verification. The voice sample will be used to verify the evidence in court,” he told reporters at the KPK headquarters.

Romahurmuziy was arrested last week at a hotel in Surabaya, East Java.

He was accused of accepting bribes from two officials in the ministry’s local offices — Haris Hasanuddin and Muafaq Wirahadi — so that both could hold their current posts. Haris and Muafaq have also been named suspects in the case.

Febri said the KPK had collected strong evidence about the communication among the suspects regarding information, including the promotion and flow of funds. The KPK investigators returned to Jakarta from Surabaya, where they collected a number of documents that will support the investigation.

“We will scrutinize the confiscated documents. Most of the documents pertain to the selection process and disciplinary sanctions imposed on HRS,” he said, referring to Haris by his initials.

Haris is the head of the ministry’s East Java office while Muafaq is the head of the ministry’s office in Gresik regency, also in East Java.

In late 2018, the two officials participated as candidates in an open recruitment process for high ranking officials of the ministry.

The two suspects had allegedly been communicating with Romahurmuziy, who is also a lawmaker, to help them with the job promotion process.

A few days later, the antigraft agency seized money from the office of Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin in a raid carried out in connection to a bribery case pertaining to botched job promotions at the ministry. The KPK also raided the rooms of the former PPP chairman and treasury at the PPP office. Apart from the money, graft busters also seized documents related to the promotion process.

“We haven’t decided which officials from the ministry we will interrogate or when,” Febri said.

Romahurmuziy has denied any intervention in the promotion process of the two ministry officials, stressing that he was only giving them references for the two candidates.

“I never intervened in the selection process. I never communicated with the selection examiners. The two officials went through the examination professionally,” he told reporters after the voice sample taking on Friday.

As for Haris, Romahurmuziy said that he gave him a positive review after he received good feedback from public figures in East Java, including religious figure Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) cleric Asep Saifuddin Chalim and East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa, who said that Haris was good at his work.

Before the recruitment, Haris was already acting head of the East Java office.

“Is it sinful to give a positive review [for an individual’s promotion] after we are made aware of his good work from other qualified people?” he said.

Romahurmuziy also said his case had nothing to do with the PPP, but claimed that the KPK disliked his popularity on social media. (das)

{

Your Opinion Matters

Share your experiences, suggestions, and any issues you've encountered on The Jakarta Post. We're here to listen.

Enter at least 30 characters
0 / 30

Thank You

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. We appreciate your feedback.