Jokowi Gives One Month to Solve Novel Baswedan's Attack Case

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo announced that he had given a deadline up to December to newly-installed National Police Chief Idham Azis to solve Novel Baswedan's acid attack case.

"I have ordered the new police chief and told him he has until early December," said the President to journalists at the Merdeka Palace on Friday, November 1.

The official end date for the team tasked to solve the case--led by Idham Azis--officially ended on Thursday, October 31. Many have voiced strong demands for the team to publicly announce their findings. 

The technical team was initially formed in early August this year, involving 120 police members. This team was initially given a deadline up to October, however, the National Police Headquarters has yet to announce their findings in detail. 

Prior to the technical team, Police also formed a team dubbed the joint fact-finding team (TGPF) that worked from January 7 to July 2019, led by former Police Chief Tito Karnavian, who has now been appointed as the Home Affairs Minister by the President. 

Novel Baswedan was attacked with acid on April 11, 2017, early at dawn while he was walking home from a nearby mosque in Kelapa Gading, North Jakarta. Many believe the attack was motivated by Novel’s investigation into a corruption case handled by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) investigator. 

FRISKI RIANA