Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – The House of Representatives Ethics Council questioned Democratic Party lawmaker Supomo over the allegation that he received Rp 1.2 billion (US$124,177) in kickbacks.
Supomo allegedly demanded the money to expedite the disbursement of social aid for the Cianjur Regional Disaster Management Agency (BNPB).
The House Ethics Council said Muhammad Sukarya, an official with the Cianjur BNPT, claimed to have transferred the money to members of Supomo's staff – identified as Haris Hartoyo and Didik – who made the demand on behalf of Supomo in 2010. Sukarya filed a complaint with the ethics council late last year because no funds had been disbursed as promised.
After questioning Supomo for two hours behind closed doors on Tuesday, the council concluded that it would hold another round of investigation to find any wrongdoing.
Council chairman M. Prakosa told reporters that it was Haris who could be implicated in the corrupt practice. "He [Supomo] told us he never sent Haris to ask for the kickbacks. We will summon his staffers for further explanation," Prakosa said.
During a questioning session conducted by the council in early February, Haris admitted that he and Didik wanted the money for themselves.
It is expected that the House will file a complaint with both the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and the National Police regarding the alleged bribery.
"I fired Haris on Feb. 14 as soon as I learned he had used my name to ask for the money. I swear I know nothing about the scheme," Supomo told reporters after the questioning session, the lawmaker maintained his innocence.
"I am a member of the Democratic Party. I've signed the integrity pact. I'm prepared to resign from my position if proven guilty," he added, referring to the Democratic Party's Supreme Assembly anti-corruption commitment pact.
This bribery allegation is the latest incident indicating the poor management of emergency disaster fund disbursement by the government, which is prone to corruption for lack of transparency.
In October last year, the Military Court in Medan, North Sumatra, sentenced a former army battalion commander, Let. Col. Edward Henderik Butar-Butar, to 18 months imprisonment for misusing disaster funds designated for soldiers deployed during the Padang earthquake in West Sumatra in 2009.
A year earlier, Medan's ad hoc court sentenced former Nias regent Binahati Benedictus Baeha to five years in prison and a Rp 100 million fine for embezzling tsunami aid funds in 2006.
In 2011, the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) announced it had classified the allocation of Rp 300 trillion of social aid funds between 2007 and 2010 as irregular. The funds were allocated to several poverty eradication programs.
The BPK recorded that several provinces had proposed much higher fund allocations than normal in the approach to the regional elections, which led many to suspect that the money was used to fund political campaigns.
Last year, state budget watchdog the Indonesian Forum for Budget Transparency (FITRA) published a report which alleged that the Disadvantaged Regions Ministry had misused the disbursement of social aid funds worth Rp 63 billion allocated to the ministry in 2011.
Despite the criticism, the government has increased the budget allocation for aid funds from Rp 4 trillion in 2012 to Rp 59 trillion this year.