Robert Go, Jakarta – Indonesian lawmakers, whose official salaries are around $3,000 a month, ride Jaguars and BMWs, and lunch regularly at five-star hotels near the parliamentary compound.

Some have disclosed having millions of dollars in their bank accounts. Senior civil servants make less, officially, so they make do with Mont Blancs and Rolexes.

Wealth-audit body KPKPN said 40 per cent of lawmakers failed to declare their assets last year. Only 35 per cent of 1,500 judges complied with auditors' requests. There is only one conclusion, experts say – the unresponsive ones have assets and deals to hide.

Corruption is not a new game here. But if analysts in Jakarta are right, it has worsened since the so-called reform era began five years ago.

President Megawati Sukarnoputri's campaign platform in 1999 included anti-graft moves. Now, many think the pledges were empty promises.

Anti-graft protests are growing. Many are targeted at the President and her party. Even prominent PDI-P members are unhappy about the issue. Several have fired salvos at members of their own party.

More and more politicians, analysts and foreign observers now say the problem is endemic in the bureaucracy. Nothing can happen here without some form of graft to grease it along.

A further observation is that within a bureaucracy this corrupt, the only way to advance through the ranks is to participate, directly or indirectly.

It is an irony, therefore, that accusing somebody else of corrupt behaviour has become a part of Indonesian politicians' arsenal. They can sink rivals' political careers this way.

Parliamentary Speaker Akbar Tandjung is a case in point – his dreams to be President have been dashed. Rivals within Golkar are also using the corruption charge to oust him from the party's leadership.

The problem with the scenario is that almost everyone has some dirt on everybody else. Nobody wants to push for harsh punishment.

For those not yet tainted, dishing out forgiving punishment for graft also sets a safe precedent, just in case the spotlight is focused on them.

The lesson from Indonesia: Graft pays. Also, almost everybody gets away with committing some form of it.

When Ms Megawati stands for re-election next year, she is sure to face tough questions about her government's anti-graft track record.

But corruption is an issue that goes beyond the next election. The cheque that the government is writing by going soft on corruption today will be cashed years from now. Unfortunately, few think the country can afford to pay up when the time comes.