•    HOME   
•    NEWS   
•    BUSINESS   
•    INTERNATIONAL   
•    TECH   
•    SPORTS   
•    LIFE & TIMES   
•    OPINION   
•    MY JAKARTA   
•    BLOGS   

House speaker Agung Laksono called on the government and lawmakers on Wednesday not to diminish the authority of the Corruption Eradication Commission through the antigraft bill.

Agung said the House of Representatives had received the government’s draft of the bill on May 28, which the government and the House Commission III for law and legislation would start discussing soon.

He said that several issues in the draft needed to be addressed to give the antigraft commission, also known as the KPK, a stronger legal basis for its existing methods of investigation and prosecution of corruption suspects.

The bill is an amendment of the current Anti-Corruption Law, which has seen the conviction of several high-profile officials, including legislators from major political parties.

“The bill is the core of the anti-graft effort, and therefore it should show support for the KPK,” Agung said in an address to the House.

Under the government draft, the KPK would no longer have the power to conduct prosecutions, only investigations.

“If we want to underpin the KPK’s existence, the bill needs to give a clear overview of its authority so that it will not weaken the KPK itself,” Agung said, adding that all corruption cases should be approached in the same firm manner, no matter how much money was involved.

The draft says that state officials involved in corruption cases dealing with less than Rp 25 million ($2,450) can be excused so long as they return the money.

It also plans to remove the KPK’s authority to wiretap telephone conversations, which Agung says should be maintained, as long as it is used in corruption cases and only for collection of information for the sake of investigation.

Furthermore, Agung said that the bill should also lay down definitive measures to help deter state officials from corruption.

The Anti-Corruption Law amendment is expected to set a clear and strong legal basis for the KPK, with part of its authority being separated under the antigraft court bill, which is also currently being debated in the House.

According to a ruling by the Constitutional Court in 2006, the country must have a new law on the anticorruption court by Dec. 19 or risk losing the legitimacy of the current court.

The House has been accused of dragging its feet in deliberating the bill, and antigraft activists have called on the government to issue a regulation in case lawmakers fail to approve the bill before the deadline.

Indonesia Corruption Watch agreed with Agung, saying that there were 15 points in the anti-graft bill which could potentially weaken the KPK’s authority.

“There is a move to delegitimize the existence of the KPK,” said Febri Diansyah, a member of the ICW’s legal research team.

A recent Financial Development Comptroller (BPKP) plan to audit the KPK drew criticism from antigraft campaigners who questioned the comptroller’s authority to audit the independent body. The president ordered the BPKP to stand down on Monday.