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Jakarta. The last two candidates in the running to lead the Corruption Eradication Commission were revealed on Friday and outlined the different approaches they would take to the job.

Bambang Widjojanto, 50, a prominent human rights lawyer, said he would work to strengthen the commission, also known as the KPK, by forming a division to focus on tracking down and returning embezzled assets.

“The main focus of the KPK right now is prevention and enforcement.

I think it also needs a division dedicated to returning the stolen money,” Bambang said as he and fellow candidate Busyro Muqoddas, 58, chairman of the Judicial Commission, expressed their readiness to be vetted by the House of Representatives.

Bambang, a co-founder of the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI), added that the KPK should also fight graft by ensuring every police investigator and prosecutor stationed at the commission became an agent for change once they returned to their respective institutions.

“They must be able to share their success stories with their peers at their institutions.

Everything that they have done and achieved [at the KPK] must be recorded and made into case studies for future graft enforcement training programs,” he said.

“To do this, the KPK needs regular communication and coordination with both the National Police and prosecutors’ offices.”

Busyro, meanwhile, emphasized cooperation as the key to combating graft.

“The KPK alone cannot eliminate the rampant corruption in Indonesia, particularly in public offices. Other ministries and institutions must also have graft-eradication programs,” he said.

“I think the KPK needs to work more closely with the government and provide technical guidance for the programs to succeed.”

However, Busyro acknowledged that some institutions were reluctant to change.

“To tackle this, we need shock therapy in the form of enforcement, such as unraveling major corruption cases and arresting everyone involved,” he said.

The minister of justice and human rights, Patrialis Akbar, who also heads the selection committee, said both candidates were well equipped for the post.

“They qualify in terms of personality, integrity and competence,” the minister said.

“We have done psychological evaluations on the candidates and they fit the profile that we need. They are both brave, consistent and have zero tolerance toward graft.

“We also judged them by their vision, as well as integrity. Bambang and Busyro have the best overall scores.”

The selection committee’s deputy chairman, Abdul Hakim Ritonga, said both candidates would be more than capable of living up to the public’s high expectations. “The main thing is that both men are honest, firm and reliable,” he said.

Hasril Hertanto, a legal analyst from University of Indonesia and chairman of the Indonesian Judicial Watch Society (Mappi), pointed to Bambang’s and Busyro’s clean track records and impeccable reputations.

“For some of the other candidates, we found that they once received bribes, illicit gratuities or other questionable funds,” Hasril said. “We didn’t find anything on those two that made us suspect that either one of them were tainted.”

Emerson Yuntho, deputy chairman of Indonesia Corruption Watch, applauded the work of the selection committee. “This time, the selection process for the leader of the KPK has been much more transparent and accessible,” he said.

“We also appreciate that the committee responded to input and complaints from members of the public.”

Hasril, meanwhile, said the committee had set standards for the last two steps: forwarding the candidates to the president for vetting and the House for final confirmation.