Erwida Maulia, Jakarta – Calls have mounted for tighter regulations of election campaign funds, with the controversial newly launched book Cikeas Octopus suggesting "illegal" flows of such funds to President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's campaign team.
Although Yudhoyono and officials from his Democratic Party have repeatedly denied all accusations made in the book, observers agree the message the book conveys is the lack of transparency in campaign fund management, possible illegal sources of such funds and loopholes in the current election law to allow such practices to occur.
Critics maintain that while large sums are clearly spent by all major parties and presidential candidates, especially in the form of television ads during the election campaign, which reach hundreds of billion of rupiah, much lower expenditure figures are reported to the General Election Commission (KPU), without any investigations or sanctions in place.
Adnan Topan Husodo from Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) said existing regulations were not enough to force election participants to publicize the source of their campaign funds, while fellow ICW member Febri Diansyah highlighted the lack of sanctions against violators.
Indonesian Institute of Sciences political analyst Ikrar Nusa Bakti said this situation led to difficulties in determining the validity of funds collected by election participants.
"ICW has concluded from our study of campaign fund reports for all presidential candidates that none of the reports meets standards of accountability and transparency," Adnan said Sunday.
"Many funds collected could not be traced back to the donor's identity and address. Some of these donations also exceed the maximum limit of donations for a holding company," he added.
The difficulty in tracking down the sources of the funds, Adnan said, made it possible for illegal funds, such as from the Bank Century bailout funds, to have been channeled to the accounts of election campaign teams.
Adnan said there was a possibility Yudhoyono's campaign team benefitted from the bailout funds, although this is not confirmed by the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) or the Financial Transactions Reporting and Analysis Center (PPATK).
Febri said existing regulations did not specify any sanctions for violators, another loophole in the country's election monitoring system. He said there were no legal grounds for KPU to follow up on the election campaign fund reports.
Ikrar suggested the election campaign funds reports be reviewed to confirm whether all donations were legal. "I believe the possibility of receiving illegal funds is shared not only by those from the Democratic Party, but also by candidates from all the other parties," he said.
Membongkar Gurita Cikeas: Di Balik Skandal Bank Century (Unmasking the Cikeas Octopus: Behind the Bank Century Scandal) is a book written by former investigative journalist George Junus Aditjondro.
The book has been enjoying intense media coverage and public interest due to reports it links Yudhoyono with the Bank Century bailout case.
It suggests that some of the Rp 6.7 trillion (US$710 million) in bailout funds might have been channeled to Yudhoyono's re-election campaign team. Officials mentioned in the book, however, have strenuously denied George's accusations.
Contentious points raised in the Cikeas Octopus book
1. A Supreme Audit Agency report from Nov. 20, 2009, shows that Bank Century suffered losses because it had to cover a deposit made by Boedi Sampoerna, its largest customer, which was embezzled by bank commissioner Robert Tantular and executive Dewi Tantular. Boedi's son, Soenaryo, had been channeling Sampoerna Group funds to the Jurnal Nasional group of publications, which were largely known as a mouthpiece for President Yudhoyono and his Democratic Party during the 2009 legislative and presidential elections.
2. Half of Antara state news agency's Public Service Obligation fund, worth Rp 40.6 billion (US$4.3 million), was channeled to the Bravo Media Center, which was part of the Yudhoyono-Boediono campaign team.
3. Three foundations associated with Yudhoyono (with their board of directors and advisory council members included in the President's inner circle): the Majelis Dzikir SBY Foundation, the Puri Cikeas Foundation and the Concern and Solidarity Foundation (YKDK), are suspected of gathering political and financial support for his re-election.
4. The YKDK is accused of receiving $1 million from Bank Bali graft fugitive Djoko Tjandra.
5. The Mutu Manikam Foundation, which is linked to First Lady Ani Yudhoyono, is said to have businesswoman and bribery criminal Artalyta Suryani as its treasurer. Artalyta is a close aide to Syamsul Nursalim, a business tycoon allegedly responsible for causing Rp 4.2 trillion in state losses related to the Bank Indonesia liquidity funds scandal. Syamsul is believed to remain free because of Artalyta's closeness to Ani.
6. "Potential" election violations by legislative candidates from the Democratic Party, who allegedly bought votes to secure legislative seats. George said this led to votes for the party tripling between 2004 and 2009.
7. The reluctance of the Democratic Party at the House of Representatives to question the government over the Bank Century bailout.