Patrol Boats: the Navys Waterloo?
THE controversy began from a letter. It was circulated to all governors in Indonesia on October 1, 2002 with the signature of Admiral Bernard Kent Sondakh, Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Navy. Its contents: inviting provincial governors to cooperate in building KAL-35 patrol boats, which will later be operated by the navy. Six provinces have positively responded to it while others are considering the matter. Riau even launched its KAL-35 in March. This project has reaped strong criticisms by various circles, ranging from procurement without tenders to infringement of the Department of Defenses authority. TEMPO investigated KAL-35 project implementation and discovered some irregularities worthy of inquiry. Following is the report.
May 18, 2004
THE quay was very busy that early morning. Two KAL-35 type patrol boats of the Indonesian Navy were berthing, a number of officers hurried aboard and tidied up. They arranged cabins, checked helm rooms, engine chambers and decks. Finally, all parts of the boats were ready to welcome a guest from a far-off region. On that day, Tuesday three weeks ago, the Western Zone Fleet Command Logistic Assistant, Col. Yarmanto, visited the place, known as the
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