Speaking during an hours-long meeting with House of Representatives Commission XI overseeing financial affairs, Sri Mulyani also said the ministry had heeded and taken into consideration the surge in public complaints regarding tax and customs officers after the widely followed case involving former tax official Rafael Alun Trisambodo.

She said the complaints ranged from unsatisfactory tax mechanisms to the inappropriate behavior of airport customs officials, and that the ministry was ready to embark on the “continuous task” of improving its communication with the public.

Recent weeks have seen negative reactions among the Indonesian public regarding the graft scandal surrounding Rafael, whose wealth was exposed when an assault charge against his son went viral. He was then summoned by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) for questioning over his recorded wealth of Rp 56 billion (US$3.66 million), just Rp 2 billion shy of Sri Mulyani’s.

Public condemnation came shortly afterward, with many people openly venting their frustration with and distrust toward the ministry’s officials, while others shared their negative experiences with customs officers.

Several figures, including Alissa Wahid, a daughter of former president Abdurrahman Wahid, took to social media to expose the inappropriate and exploitative behavior of customs officials in anecdotal accounts of officials mishandling their belongings, intimidating them and charging exorbitant fees.

“From March to December, we have requested better communication from our account representatives [AR], functional officers, bailiffs and frontliners,” Sri Mulyani told the House commission.

“To command 52,000 employees across the ministry is definitely a continuous task,” she added.

She also noted that many people perceived tax and customs officers as hostile. “Many people find themselves filled with fear even when entering a tax office. They find communicating with ARs an intimidating experience, even when they are not treated with aggression.”

Aside from communication training, the ministry had started making its mechanisms accessible and streamlined for use by the general public, Sri Mulyani said.

This included the launch of the electronic net income calculation norms (E-NPPN) application to help people complete their tax reports, as well as an electronic customs declaration to minimize the need to queue at airports and reduce unnecessary interactions with customs officers.

The minister said at least 3,676 “tax booths” had been set up across the country to assist taxpayers.

‘From the roots’

Despite the ministry’s attempts to recover public trust, lawmakers made it clear that rampant corruption within the institution remained the core issue. Rafael was by no means an isolated case, they said, and other customs officials had been exposed recently in similar cases.

“[Rafael] was an echelon III official. There are many other officials [at his level] who frequently intimidate businessmen for exploitative aims. This has to be solved from the roots,” said lawmaker Mathius Markus Mekeng from the Golkar Party faction.

Vera Febyanthy from the opposition Democratic Party faction representative said the problems within the ministry had tainted Sri Mulyani’s reputation.

“The surfacing of the ministry’s internal problems, specifically those relating to suspicious wealth and public displays of hedonistic lifestyles among tax and customs officials, are all highly concerning,” she added.

Sri Mulyani noted, however, that the public whirlwind had sparked an internal auditing “marathon”, including the back-to-back summoning of 69 officials flagged for being at risk of corruption.

The ministry had summoned 47 officials as of March 17, she continued, and that “disciplinary actions” had been taken against those those found guilty, “including [Rafael] and the two customs officials who went viral”.

When asked about the Rp 300 trillion in “suspicious transactions” at the ministry due to “money laundering” that Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Mahfud MD exposed on March 10, Sri Mulyani reiterated that she was not made aware of the amount and that the majority of those transactions were beyond the authority of the ministry’s internal affairs division.