TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - THE bribery scandal involving officials of the Ministry of Villages, Underdeveloped Regions and Transmigration, and an auditor of the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) highlights the collapse of the two-state pillars all at once. Fraudulent practices to cover up bad financial management are still carried out by the ministry, a state body in the executive branch. Meanwhile, the credibility of BPK as a state institution entrusted to oversee the country's finances is now in jeopardy.
The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) nabbed two BPK officialsAli Sadli, a primary auditor, and Rochmadi Saptogiri, a top echelon official for allegedly taking kickbacks from the Ministry of Villages at the end of May. During the raid on Ali's office, investigators found Rp40 million suspected to be part of a Rp240 million pledged in exchange for an Auditor's Unqualified Opinion (WTP). Investigators also found Rp1.145 billion and US$3,000 of unknown origin.
The ministry official who gave the bribes was no ordinary official either. He is Sugito, the ministry's Inspector-General, arrested along with Jarot Budi Prabowo, an echelon III official of the same ministry. The role of the ministry's inspector-general in the case is truly tragic. The official tasked with keeping a close watch on the behavior of the ministry's officials instead perpetrated the treacherous act.
The anti-graft body must fully expose the case, which is related to the ministry's 2016 budget report. The bribery amount is suspected to be more than just Rp240million, so it is highly possible the case did not only involve the two officials but probably their superiors. After all, the WTP opinion, which signifies good financial management, is considered critical to each ministry, as the President uses it as a basis for budget allocations for the following year.
Let us not forget that bribery over the WTP opinion has long been existent. The Indonesia Corruption Watch recorded at least six cases involving 23 BPK auditors in the past 12 years. In North Sulawesi, for example, an auditor named Bahar was convicted for accepting Rp1.6 billion in payoffs from several regencies and cities in the province, and sentenced five-and-a half years imprisonment for the crime. Two West Java BPK auditors, Enang Hermawan and Suharto, were also given prison sentences for taking Rp400 million from Bekasi Mayor Mochtar Mohammad. The money was gratification for the WTP opinion for Bekasi in 2009.
The BPK must tighten the control over its auditors to prevent more scandals. Even the slightest discrepancy in audit procedures must be prevented. The state institution already has in place an honorary ethics council consisting of academics which can investigate rogue auditors.
The notion that BPK opinion is up for sale has remarkably damaging effects. The public has lost its trust in the WTP stamp, the WDP (qualified opinion) and even the TMP (disclaimer opinion) issued by the agency. Until there are other alternatives to measure ministry financial performances, President Joko Widodo should stop using BPK opinions as the barometer. Only after the BPK has cleaned up house and earned back its credibility can the practice be resumed.
Reforming the auditors' behavior is a most pressing need given the BPK's status as the state's only auditing agency as mandated by the Constitution. Government officials, on the other hand, should not be preoccupied with 'buying' BPK opinion. A ministry's achievements are not determined by a mere stamp, but rather its good governance, the benefits of which can be felt by the public.(*)
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