TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko Widodo or Jokowi said the battle against corruption in Indonesia is not serious, as evidenced by the many numbers of regional heads found to have given or received bribes.
"Indonesia is one of the countries whose corruption cases are 'active'," Widodo said during the World Anti- Corruption Day event at Jakarta's Bidakara Hotel, Monday, December 11.
Read: Jokowi Comments on Investigations into KPK Leaders
According to the president, since 2004 12 governors and 64 regents have been arrested for their involvement in corruption. The KPK has also arrested members and chiefs of the House of Representatives.
"There are so many of them I lost count," Jokowi said.
The president added that efforts to prevent corruption must be intensified. There are many ways to do so, he added, such as by revamping administrative services in government institutions to educate the public.
Widodo added that deregulation can also be a solution to strengthen corruption prevention, since many cases began from ways of cutting short administrative processes that complicate rules or licensing.
"Many people seem to like publishing unclear, gray rules. They then become object of shady transactions," he remarked, saying that licensing rules are often used as a blackmail tool for bribery and kickback dealings.
Read: Jokowi: Corruption is an Extraordinary Crime
Regarding deregulation, President Widodo reminded bureaucrats to stop making administrative rules that are vulnerable to being manipulated. Additionally, he said there are many rules that need to be simplified,
"There are 42,000 that must be trimmed."
Deregulation poses a particular challenge for Jokowi's government. The Constitutional Court has determined that the cancellation of Regional Regulation can no longer be done by the Central Government.
ISTMAN MUSAHARUN PRAMADIBA
