KPK investigators also summoned the Agriculture Ministry’s secretary-general Kasdi Subagyono and agricultural machinery director Muhammad Hatta for questioning. Hatta has long been known as Syahrul’s confidant and previously worked at the South Sulawesi administration when Syahrul was the governor. KPK spokesman Ali Fikri said the investigators had listed 30 people who would face the music regarding allegations of gratuity related to promotions in 2019-2023. A source from Tempo revealed that the gratuity was obtained by forging official travel orders (SPPD).

Corruption, whether small or large in scale, has detrimental effects on the functioning of the state. The KPK’s investigation into Syahrul has yet to reveal any graft-mired government programs or policies affecting the wider public, prompting critics to wonder if Syahrul was questioned as another dig at NasDem.

The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) recently declared Johnny, the former communication and information minister, a graft suspect in the alleged botched procurement of base transceiver stations (BTS) for a government 4G telephony project. The graft case reportedly caused Rp 8 trillion in state losses.

Syahrul has asked the public to refrain from jumping to a conclusion before the investigation into him, which many assume is politically charged, is concluded. But even if Syahrul escapes the KPK’s scythe, being summoned for questioning would be enough to taint NasDem’s electoral chances, including its nomination of former Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan for president.

Ever since NasDem announced last November its support for Anies’ presidential bid, the party has been struggling to maintain its foothold in the government coalition. Having teamed up with two opposition parties, the Democratic Party and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), to form the Coalition of Change for Unity (KPP), other parties in the government coalition demanded NasDem’s ouster. This is why many assume that a Cabinet shake-up is imminent and that NasDem would lose all its Cabinet seats.

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Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) analyst Noory Okthariza said graft allegations against NasDem’s ministers would also reflect poorly on the party’s commitments to corruption eradication, which would in turn cost them the legislative elections.

Whoever is pulling the strings behind the scenes, likely President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo in a bid to play his role as kingmaker, is succeeding, however. According to a survey conducted by Indometer earlier this month, NasDem’s electability had been in decline and now sat at 2.3 percent. Meanwhile, several surveys have shown that Anies’ electability is also seeing a declining trend. An Indikator Politik survey, for one, showed that Anies’ electability in October 2022 reached 28.4 percent, but fell to 21.8 percent in May 2023.

What’s more

It is clear that having a NasDem minister summoned by the KPK has not only severely affected the party, but also Anies. The covert campaign to undermine the former Jakarta governor’s presidential candidacy may prolong as Jokowi continues to endorse the two presidential front runners, namely Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto and Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo.

NasDem might be in for another surprise though as Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya, who is also a member of the party, was summoned by Jokowi on June 16. Though it was reported that their impromptu meeting was intended to discuss air pollution, its curious timing has roused suspicions that this was another maneuver on Jokowi’s part.

Thus, it is not so far-fetched to suspect that the KPK had purposely targeted NasDem. A source told Tempo that KPK investigators had agreed to name Syahrul a suspect. The attack on NasDem is obvious especially considering that the antigraft body had once attempted to thwart Anies’ presidential ambitions directly by dragging him into a corruption case.

KPK chairman Firli Bahuri came under fire for trying to launch a full-blown investigation into the staging of the Formula-E race in Jakarta in 2021, but did not have enough evidence to implicate Anies.

What we’ve heard

The Corruption Eradication Commission is said to have agreed to name Agriculture Minister Syahrul Yasin Limpo a suspect in a case involving financial misconduct and bribery at the ministry. The KPK has been investigating the case since January 2023 and questioned dozens of witnesses.

Several sources have mentioned that Syahrul, through his close associates, is suspected of collecting money from officials under his supervision. The money was used to cover his and his inner circle’s needs. "The amount is in the hundreds of millions," said one of the sources.

One of the alleged methods used is payment for promotions. A source familiar with the case revealed that officials who wanted promotions had to pay a certain amount of money through Syahrul's close associates.

Syahrul is said to spend the money collected from the officials on his personal needs, such as the rental of private transportation during his visits to various regions. "The collection is allegedly conducted by officials within the Ministry," said a law enforcement official.           

Disclaimer

This content is provided by Tenggara Strategics in collaboration with The Jakarta Post to serve the latest comprehensive and reliable analysis on Indonesia’s political and business landscape. Access the latest edition of Tenggara Backgrounder to read the articles listed below:

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