Further revisions should be made to the political party bill to increase accountability among political parties, anti-corruption activists have said.
The coordinator of the political corruption division of Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW), Fahmi Badoh, said the political party bill needs to specify that transparent budgets are a requirement for political parties to join general elections.
He said the absence of such administrative requirements would open up the possibility for the misuse of funds.
"Financial transparency will prevent the illegal use of funds by party members. These days we cannot tell how much goes in and out of party coffers," Fahmi said during a discussion at the ICW's office Tuesday.
According to the revised bill, individual benefactors may give up to Rp 1 billion to political parties (approximately US$110,000), while institutional benefactors can donate Rp 3 billion.
Fahmi suggested a Rp 500 million maximum should be set for individual benefactors, with the institutional maximum set at Rp 1 billion.
"If we don't regulate the finances of political parties, certain people or institutions will control parties through the conditional donation of funds. Parties need to have various sources of funding," Fahmi said.
He said the new bill should encourage political parties to be more accountable by performing audits, submitting financial reports to authorities and publishing them.
Vice Coordinator of ICW Ridaya Laode Ngkowe said parties tended to delay financial audits. According to ICW data, only 10 parties submitted financial reports in 2004. This number decreased in the following years, with only nine parties submitting reports in 2005 and 2006.
He said the punishment for such violations – a suspension of state subsidies – was quite mild. Parties that receive illegal funds, do not have an adequate administrative system for their finances or do not report campaign funds are often only reprimanded by the Home Ministry.
"We assume that the number of parties not reporting funds will increase. We have also noticed that the quality of financial reports is still below standard," said Ridaya.
Fahmi said political parties needed to have a specific accounting system. Parties generally use accounting systems similar to those of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), which are not compatible with their activities. "NGOs may receive funds from foreign donors, while political parties can't. If the same accounting system is applied, the parties could exploit this loophole," said Fahmi.
Supreme Audit Agency auditor Ilya Avianti said that political parties were very different from NGOs because the purpose of political parties was to gain positions in the government, while NGOs aim to achieve social welfare. Therefore, political parties should use a different accounting system, she said.