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‘Ordinary fisherman’ accused of bribing governor with S$6,000
Residents of Panjang Island in Batam, Riau Islands, were shocked to learn that their neighbor Abu Bakar — who they described as an “ordinary fisherman” — had been named a suspect for allegedly handing out S$6,000 (US$4,422) in bribes in relation to a reclamation project
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span>Residents of Panjang Island in Batam, Riau Islands, were shocked to learn that their neighbor Abu Bakar — who they described as an “ordinary fisherman” — had been named a suspect for allegedly handing out S$6,000 (US$4,422) in bribes in relation to a reclamation project.
The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) described Abu as a businessman who had allegedly given the illicit money in a bribery case that has also implicated government officials, including Riau Islands Governor Nurdin Basirun.
However, Abu’s neighbors deemed it impossible that Abu could have owned such large sums of money as they thought he was merely a fisherman who lived in a modest house with an ordinary family.
Nazaruddin, a former village chief of Sijantung in Galang subdistrict, Batam, said he was convinced that the man arrested by the KPK was Abu, a resident of Panjang Island, which is located a one-hour boat ride from Batam and is part of his administration.
“Abu Bakar has always been known as an ordinary fisherman. He earned just enough to live day by day, so I think it’s impossible for him to have that much money to bribe [Nurdin],” he told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.
“When I saw [Abu] on TV and the internet, I was shocked. How could [the KPK] call Abu a businessman?” said Nazaruddin, who served as Sijantung village chief from 2004 to 2017.
He further suspected that there might have been a “mastermind” who had ordered Abu to handover the bribe money to Nurdin. “We want the KPK to reveal who has driven Abu to commit [the crime].”
One of Abu’s neighbors, Dollah Tambang, concurred with Nazaruddin, saying that Abu and his family lived in a modest house and that he owned a few wooden boats that he usually used to go fishing.
Dollah, who works as a boat skipper and takes children on the island to their school on the nearby Galang Island, said that Abu had a wife and two daughters, with the eldest now in fifth grade in elementary school, while the youngest was 5 years old.
“His wife is just an ordinary housewife. Apart from working as a fisherman, Abu also actively takes part in organizations,” he added.
However, Abu’s house has been vacant ever since he was arrested by the graft busters on Wednesday last week, Dollah said, adding that he had no idea where Abu’s wife and children had gone.
Abu was named a suspect for allegedly offering bribes in a bid to obtain necessary permits for a reclamation project at Tanjung Piayu in Batam to be developed into a resort and tourist area, even though the site was previously reserved for land cultivation and a protected forest.
The antigraft body has also named Nurdin and Riau Islands Maritime Affairs Agency head Edy Sofyan and agency official Budi Hartono suspects for allegedly accepting bribes.
In contrast to Abu’s house, Nurdin’s official residence in Tanjung Pinang — located a 1.5-hour boat ride from Panjang Island, has been bustling with KPK investigators since Friday last week from morning to midnight.
While Nurdin has been detained by the KPK, Nurdin’s wife Norliza, who is a Singaporean citizen, is currently living in Singapore with the couple’s two children.
During a raid at Nurdin’s official residence, the antigraft body said it had confiscated Rp 3.5 billion ($250,474), $33,200 and S$134.711 ($98,918) found in backpacks, boxes and plastic and paper bags.
The Riau Islands administration decided to postpone the Tanjung Piayu reclamation project following Nurdin’s arrest.
