Kennial Caroline Laia, Jakarta – Antigraft activists say they understand the purpose of the police's involvement in the selection process of new leaders of the Corruption Eradication Commission, or KPK, but warn the selection panel to stay alert to vested interests that may harm the process.
The selection committee – consisting of nine women with different areas of expertise – met with police on Tuesday to request background checks on KPK commissioner applicants. So far, the committee has received 20 applications.
The committee and the police have agreed that no applicants with pending charges from existing criminal investigations should be selected to serve on the KPK following the suspensions earlier this year of two current commissioners – chairman Abraham Samad and one of his deputies, Bambang Widjojanto – after they were named criminal suspects in separate cases by the police.
The charges, stemming from minor cases dating back up to a decade, are widely seen as trumped up and part of the police's retaliation against the KPK for its naming of police general Budi Gunawan as a bribery suspect in January, days after he was nominated for police chief.
Indonesia Corruption Watch researcher Lola Easter says it is understandable for the selection committee to ask the police's help to do background checks on the KPK applicants, but warns there can be a conflict of interest.
"It's not quite right to involve the police in the selection process for KPK commissioners, given the current situation between both institutions. The selection committee must limit the police role to searching only the candidates' track records," Lola told the Jakarta Globe on Wednesday.
"The selection committee must keenly observe every bit of information and suggestion coming from anywhere to prevent external interests that can harm corruption eradication in the future," she added.
Setara Institute chairman Hendardi, meanwhile, said the public should not worry about the police's participation in the selection process, adding it was merely part of the process the committee must carry out.
He also said it was more important to scrutinize the next stage of the process, which was the vetting of short-listed candidates by the House of Representatives.
"A [police check] is a common procedure. No significant implications will come of it," Hendardi said on Wednesday. "The applicants' bids don't depend entirely on the selection committee. Their task is only to approve a list of applicants. Another thing that we must watch out for is [the vetting process at] the House."
Hendardi said the possibility of political interference was much greater in the House, with legislators having a long history of involvement in major corruption cases. He added it was here that President Joko Widodo must show his commitment to eradicating corruption in Indonesia.
"The most important thing is the president's integrity. He can't be weak or easily influenced by people in safeguarding the antigraft agency. He must be at the front line to protect the KPK," Hendardi said.