April 26, 2016 edition
The government should not remain silent over the names of civil servants listed in the Panama Papers. It is not enough for President Joko Widodo to summon the officials concerned and listen to their explanations on why they own companies in tax-haven nations, as disclosed in the leaked documents of Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca.
The President should be more assertive. He should, for example, conduct an independent investigation to determine the real motives of companies seeking a tax shelter in other countries. Law No. 28/1999 on a Clean Government Free of Corruption, Collusion and Nepotism clearly justifies such action.
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April 19, 2016 edition
It was truly amusing to see the conduct of Ade Komarudin and Setya Novanto in their responses to the tax amnesty bill submitted by the government. The two Golkar legislators busily lobbied faction leaders at the leadership of the House of Representatives (DPR) to determine who would lead the discussions.
DPR speaker Ade Komarudin asked that the tax amnesty bill be discussed by the finance and banking commission, while Golkar faction chief Setya Novanto wanted it to discussed by a special committee. It is fair to suspect that this was the result of the competition between the two men who are currently vying for the Golkar Party chairmanship. But this is not what concerns the public.
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April 12, 2016 edition
The political drama starring the leadership of the Justice and Prosperity Party (PKS) and its member Fahri Hamzah is light entertainment at a time when respect for the House of Representatives (DPR) is at a low as a result of the conduct of its members. This matter did not begin with bribery, scandal or a comparative study tour with attendant high costs.
Even though in 'minor league' of problems, the conduct of several DPR legislators has been far from honorable: napping, looking at obscene pictures on a cellphone screen during plenary sessions, or using impolite language. It is this last misdemeanor that led to Fahri Hamzah, known as a vocal speaker in Senayan, to being fired. The chairman of the PKS central executive board dismissed him from the party on April 1. He also lost his other positions in the party, including his seat as deputy DPR speaker.
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April 5, 2016 edition
Piracy is a crime that must not be tolerated. And rescuing the crew of the Anand 12 held hostage by Abu Sayyaf militants is now a priority of the government. But this must be done without negotiating with the kidnappers. Once we give in to their demands, they will carry out more terror acts. As soon as the authorities obtain the green light from the Philippine government, security officials should promptly carry out their rescue operation.
Early this week, Abu Sayyaf, an Islamic extremist group in the Philippines, hijacked Indonesian-flagged tugboat Brahma 12 and its barge, the Anand 12, that were carrying 7,000 tons of coal from the Puting river in South Kalimantan to Batangas in the southern Philippines. The pirates later released the Brahma 12, but detained the Anand 12 along with 10 sailorsall Indonesians and the cargo.
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March 29, 2016 edition
If Basuki Tjahaja Purnama were not the incumbent governor of Jakarta, the purchase of the site of the Sumber Waras psychiatric hospital would be seen as simply a normal transaction. But the plan for the man better known as Ahok to stand again for election next year is why the July 2014 land sale in West Jakarta has become such a hot issue.
The purchase by the Jakarta administration is under the spotlight for at least three reasons: the price, the location and the procedures that were followed. The price is seen as too high, compared with the offer the previous landowner had agreed to. The location is an issue because it had a higher land valuation on Jalan Kyai Tapa, not on Jalan Tomang Utara, the other street bordering the property. Finally, Basuki is alleged to have violated the procurement regulations.
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March 22, 2016 edition
POLITICAL parties apparently are more preoccupied with undermining independent candidates running for regional offices than creating a healthy democratic election process. Their intention is obvious when the House of Representatives' (DPR) domestic affairs commission sought to change the minimum requirements for such candidates, which it already planned through a revision of Law No. 8/2015 on Regional Executives Elections.
The constitutional court has actually just amended the regulations on the criteria for independent candidates, stipulating that to be legitimate contenders, they must gather 6.5 to 10 percent of the ID cards of their permanent constituents who voted in the previous elections, not the current population. Candidates for the upcoming Jakarta gubernatorial election, for example, must have the endorsement of at least 525,000 residents, or 7.5 percent of the 7 million strong constituents.
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March 15, 2016 edition