Ezra Sihite & Novy Lumanauw, Jakarta – President Joko Widodo's sole nominee for police chief should withdraw from the process in a bid to quell the brouhaha spawned by his being named a corruption suspect, a close aide to the president said on Tuesday.
Pratikno, the state secretary, acknowledged that police general Budi Gunawan's status as a criminal suspect had put Joko in a difficult spot, and suggested that the best way out of the quagmire would be for Budi to drop out of the process to be named National Police chief.
"It's not easy to come up with a solution to end this," he said, but added that the problem could "end right away" if Budi withdrew. "If he doesn't withdraw, the dilemma between the political and legal affairs will continue," Pratikno said.
He indicated, however, that Joko would stick to his own policy of not rescinding Budi's nomination, instead putting the impetus on Budi himself to withdraw.
"That's our position. From the beginning, we have respected the law," Pratikno said. "In the end, the president should make a decision. Hopefully he'll do it soon."
Budi was named a suspect for bribery and money laundering by the Corruption Eradication Commission, or KPK, on Jan. 13, just three days after Joko nominated him to be the new National Police chief.
The police, which has a history of rash reprisals against the highly regarded antigraft commission whenever it charges a police general with graft, has since named all four KPK commissioners suspects in a range of cold cases – some dating back a decade – in what critics say is a blatant act of revenge.
Amid the furor, Joko delayed Budi's inauguration, but emphasized that he was not canceling it.