Ade Ridwan Yandwiputra, Jakarta – Novel Baswedan, a former Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) investigator, said he was puzzled by the conduct of the anti-corruption agency's leadership. According to him, the KPK's way of handling the case of South Kalimantan Governor Sahbirin Noor, or Uncle Birin, was too soft.
Novel said that in Uncle Birin's case, the KPK, which should have been able to handle the case even though the suspect had filed a pre-trial motion, instead decided to wait for the pre-trial motion to be completed.
"This is a joke," Novel told Tempo on Wednesday, October 16.
Novel's harsh criticism came in response to a statement by KPK Deputy Chairman Nurul Ghufron that the investigation of Birin as a suspect could only begin after the ruling on the pre-trial motion. He cited the KPK's respect for the principle of human rights in upholding the law as the reason.
Novel said the suspect's pretrial petition should not have been an issue. If the KPK has sufficient evidence to identify someone as a suspect, the trial should be allowed to continue. "It shouldn't be a problem," he said.
In fact, Novel said, even if the pretrial motion is lost, the case will not be dropped. This is in reference to the e-ID corruption case involving Setya Novanto. At that time, Setya Novanto won the pre-trial motion, but the KPK continued to pursue the case and was able to present evidence that the Golkar Party politician was indeed involved in corruption.
"Even if the pre-trial decision is lost, the KPK can still reopen the case and name him as a suspect again," said Novel, the former investigator in the e-KTP corruption case.
KPK deputy chair Nurul Ghufron said the commission respected South Kalimantan Governor Sahbirin Noor's legal efforts through pretrial proceedings and decided not to summon him for questioning until the process is completed.
"The KPK respects the exercise of the rights of the person concerned, further proceedings will wait for the results of the pre-trial," Nurul Ghufron told Tempo on Tuesday, October 15.
Ghufron said the decision to wait until the end of the pre-trial process was based on the KPK's respect for human rights. "One of the principles of the KPK in enforcing the law, as stipulated in Article 5(f) of the KPK Law, is respect for human rights," Ghufron said.
Sahbirin Noor, or better known as Uncle Birin, has been named as a suspect for bribery and gratification in the rigging of auctions for three projects in South Kalimantan in the 2024 budget year. He was named as a suspect after the KPK conducted a sting operation or OTT at several locations in Banjarbaru, South Kalimantan on October 6, 2024.
In response to his naming as a suspect, Sahbirin Noor filed a pre-trial motion with the District Court of South Jakarta. The first hearing of the case will be held on October 28, 2024.
– Ririe Ranggasari