TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - It is difficult to believe that an ethics violation is taking place in public, by an 'honored' person and under the protection of the law. This time, Setya Novanto is showing his ability to do it all although he had some help.
Whether it is admitted or not, this shameful plan to reinstate Setya Novanto as speaker of the House of Representatives (DPR) is the result of an effective collaboration between the Golkar faction and the party chairman. This not only proves Setya's political cunning, it also proves that the leadership logjam within the party elite is intentional.
This bad news broke, in the midst of public doubt over the validity of the Constitutional Court's ruling that the tape recording of a conversation between Setya, then Freeport Indonesia CEO Maroef Sjamsoeddin and businessman Riza Chalid, could not be used as evidence. The trial of Jessica Wongso a few months ago, in which a CCTV recording was allowed to be used as evidence in court, should have immediately corrected that ruling on Setya Novanto.
In the Constitutional Court hearing, the judges granted a part of Setya's petition by adding the provision that electronic recordings must be made by law enforcement officials. Based on this, the DPR Ethics Council restored Setya's good name. This was very strange because Setya's case was related to ethics, whereas the Constitutional Court ruling was in the realm of the law, and only related directly to the process of law enforcement. This correction of the Electronic Transactions and Information Law did not automatically revoke similar provisions in regulations concerned with codes of ethics.
So far, the DPR has yet to amend DPR Regulation No. 2/2015 on the Ethics Council Proceedings. Article 27 section d of this regulation clearly includes electronic recordings as valid evidence. This regulation describes the types of evidence, namely information that can be read, seen or heard. This information can be in any physical form apart from statement on paper, including those which are electronically recorded.
There were a number of irregularities in the 'Papa Wants Shares' scandal. The first was when Setya suddenly resigned at the final stage of the questioning, meaning the House Ethics Council was unable to penalize him for his violation. In the next stage, it became clear that the attempt to reinstate Setya also involved individuals outside the party. The meeting with President Joko Widodo showed that Setya, who is a businessman and friend of US president-elect Donald Trump, was seen as a man with a part to play in resolving national problems.
There is no avoiding the fact that Setya Novanto has bargaining power. Was it not Setya who immediately, upon becoming party chairman, declared that Golkar was now a supporter of the government, despite having backed Prabowo Subianto in the 2014 presidential election? It is clear that under his leadership, Golkar has somewhat managed to undercut the influence of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) over Jokowi.
It is true that President Jokowi was once angry with Setya when his name was misrepresented during the 'Papa Wants Shares' scandal. But the recent meeting between the President and Setya at the Merdeka Palace showed that this anger is meaningless compared to what Jokowi, under pressure from Islamists, needs. And that is nothing less than the guaranteed support of Golkar. (*)
Read the full story in this week's edition of Tempo English Magazine
