04 October 2009

Look Whose Smiling Now...Will it Last?


There are some things that just beggar belief and then there are those things that just seem too stupid for words. But, any of you that have read this blog will know that I am rarely stuck for words even when things seem to be too stupid for them.

Comm. Gen. (Police) Susno Duaji found time to make a visit to the Corruption Eradication Commission (Komisi Pemberantasan Korupsi / KPK) to get an update, or as he would prefer to call it, a clarification. Why is this too stupid for words? Anyone who thinks a little bit about this situation will see that this is nothing short of a very public attempt at intimidation. Duaji is saying, "You wanna mess with me, then you end up a suspect, and out of a job!"

This sort of behaviour is reminiscent of a Mafioso made man. It is the behaviour of a man who thinks his back is covered and he is protected. Just sometimes, and only sometimes, these are the people that are most exposed. If for no other reason than they are expendable as the bigger fish look to tie off any loose ends.

By putting himself front and centre on this one, Duaji also becomes the most likely to take the fall or become the scape goat when this whole affair goes pear-shaped. And, it will go pear-shaped, and perhaps soon.

The focus here needs to be only on Duaji at this point in time. Somehow, I believe that there are plenty of people who would share my belief that Duaji wants it no other way.

This post does not lend itself to a very long expose. The spat between the KPK and Duaji, and perhaps the Police, is long on details. Nevertheless, there are a few pertinent details that are worth repeating, along with some educated speculation about why it came about in the first place. It is also worth noting that this is bigger than one man and a couple of state institutions in the form of the KPK and the police.

There are others involved here. This case involves a traceable money trail and it goes without saying that perhaps the Indonesian Financial Transactions Reports and Analysis Center (Pusat Pelaporan dan Analisis Transaksi Keuangan / PPATK) uncovered a trail of cash and other illicit payments that may implicate a number of those individuals that seem intent on shutting down any KPK investigation into Bank Century, and by default Bank Indonesia (Indonesian Central Bank).

Interestingly, if this case does involve BI, and it seemingly does, then who would be involved at that level? When the Bank Century bail out was being discussed and ultimately approved, the Vice President-elect was at the helm. One would have to wonder whether or not there is going to be a concerted effort to shield the VP-elect from any fallout that may eventuate. So, in that case, who takes the fall? Sri Mulyani Indrawati?

It would also seem that the Office of the Attorney General is intricately and intimately involved in the process of facilitating this fiasco. There is plenty already in the public record that suggests that, at least, at the second tier level of AGO officials there was a concerted effort to facilitate an end to the Anggoro Widjojo investigation.

This is a case that will unravel because their are too many hands in the cookie jar.

There is little doubt that Duaji has gone "balls to the wall" on this one. He is investing everything that he has to protect his interests, and perhaps the interests of some others as well. So much so that there are clear breaches of the police code of ethics with respect to the abuse of authority and in terms of more technical aspects of police officers doing their duty and fulfilling their obligations as officers.

It is time that the Chief of Police and the President became more pro-actively involved in this issue. The Chief of Police must stand Duaji down until the investigations are complete.

The potential for this mess to become even uglier and dirtier is huge. Sometimes it is worth while just sitting back and thinking about how big this case has become and how big it is likely to become.

Is it big enough to bring down SBY? Who knows? What does seem certain is that more heads are going to roll!

(Photo courtesy of here)

7 comments:

Tikno said...

as a commoner people, I am confused which one is right. Hopefully the fact will come soon.

Unknown said...

The case is very complicated, involving so many institutions and top ranking officials therefore he has a reason to be smiling.

Rob Baiton said...

Tikno...

I am not sure that it makes any difference whether one is a commoner or part of the elite.

There are plenty of people confused.

Hopefully, indeed.

Harry...

The case is not as complicated as it seems ;)

Yes, there are lots more of the apparatus of state involved than just the KPK and the police (but this does not make it complicated).

I guess that is my point to a point; he might be smiling now, but how much longer will he be smiling?

This issue is thought to be complicated because people are not sure who is involved, why it started, and who it might bring down.

At least, that is my opinion. It seems Duaji has sort to put people between himself and the KPK and, to my mind, he has achieved this - the president stepped in with a perpu :D

There is more to come, I am just working on how to craft it in such a way that it protects the innocent and implicates the baddies.

Tikno said...

and the winner is... temporarily... the "corruptors"!!!

Rob Baiton said...

Tikno...

They won't win forever!

The thing is, there will always be corruption. Even in countries that are considered to have a handle on corruption, like Australia, the US, the UK, and others, corruption still occurs.

The difference is that it is a very small minority. Indonesia will get there one day.

This is a process that was always going to take a lot of time. As the old saying goes, Rome was not built in a day. So, it is going to take some time to build a system that is pro-actively anti-corruption.

lawko said...

another layer?? Today's globe..

Indonesian Government and RNI Involved in Debt Deal

The government has been surreptitiously using taxpayer money since 2004 to repay debts worth Rp 1.7 trillion ($149.4 million) owed to overseas lenders by ailing state plantation and pharmaceutical company PT Rajawali Nusantara Indonesia, according to a leaked document obtained by the Jakarta Globe.

Rob Baiton said...

Lawko...

There is more on the way.

When this thing finally busts all the way open there will be lots more of these WTF moments.

This is really much larger than anyone had previously considered, and potentially much more violent.