TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Akil Mochtar could spend the rest of his life in jail. The panel of judges at the anticorruption court agreed with the prosecutors that the crimes committed by the former head of the Constitutional Court were very serious, and that he therefore should receive the maximum sentence: life imprisonment. For the first time, the court handed down the maximum jail term for a law official found guilty of corruption and taking bribes.
A 20-year sentence had been imposed on Urip Tri Gunawan, a prosecutor who accepted a bribe from Artalyta Surayani in connection with the controversial Bank Indonesia Liquidity Assistance funds program. But a court had also handed down a lenient sentence of four years in jail to Syarifudin Umar, who took bribes in the bankruptcy case of Sky Camping, despite the prosecution demand that the judges sentence him to a 20-year jail term.
The sentence on Akil seems appropriate. He was found guilty of 'monetizing' 10 disputed regional elections, from Lebak in Banten to Morotai in North Maluku, all of which had been handled by the Constitutional Court. He took bribes totaling more than Rp57 billion. Akil's actions destroyed the reputation of the Court and dragged it into the mud. In the judgment read out by Justice Suwidya, Akil was accused of ruining the Court's integrity.
The court verdict is worthy of praise. Besides the importance in restoring public trust in the legal system, it set a new precedent in the effort to fight corruption and corrupt officials. It is an example of how the Corruption Law, the Criminal Code and the Money Laundering Law can be used to maximum legal effect. It also proved that there is no need for judges to fear imposing the maximum penalty if the prosecution's charges are proven.
Akil may well continue to protest his innocence. He will have plenty of time in jail to dwell on his actions. All the people want to see is this jail sentence having a deterrent effect on other corrupt officials fond of taking bribes but who have yet to be exposed. And for some state officials, Akil's sentence should pose a threat that might prevent them from similar wrongdoing.
But there remains one regret: neither the prosecutors nor the judges have really tried to impoverish this convicted criminal. The court returned some of Akil's assets seized by the Corruption Eradication Commission because they failed to prove they were the proceeds of corruption. These assets amount to around Rp11 billion. The judges should have reversed the burden of proof and obliged him to prove that his wealth was obtained legally, as stipulated in Article 77 of the Money Laundering Law. If he was unable to do so, the judges could have confiscated his assets for the state.
The prosecutors should have tried harder to prove that the value of Akil's assets rose suspiciously sharply because of illicit enrichment. This reverse burden of proof was used successfully in the case of Bahasyim Assifie. In addition to jailing him for 12 years, the South Jakarta District Court also seized assets worth Rp60.9 billion and US$681,147 for the state because the tax official was unable to prove their origin.
We hope that in passing life sentences, the anticorruption court will try to impoverish corruptors. These two sentences should send a clear message to corruptors: instead of becoming rich, involvement in corruption will make you destitute. (*)