"Corruption done by the Communication and Information Accessibility Agency (BAKTI) at the Communication and Informatics Ministry is very ironic. YLKI expects the law enforcement apparatus to pursue all perpetrators of this crime thoroughly," Head of Complaints and Law at YLKI Sularsi said in a written statement received here on Wednesday.
The agency said it expects them to catch the perpetrators and charge them under the Money Laundering Crime Law to ensure a deterrent effect and prevent similar cases in the future.
Sularsi urged President Joko Widodo's government to audit the investigation and conduct a thorough evaluation of all suspect telecommunications projects being implemented by the agency as the projects were funded using the people's money.
Moreover, people have the right to know what is being done with the agency's money.
YLKI has also called for transparency in funding. The ministry was supposed to involve people in monitoring the development of the telecommunications network by the agency.
“The audit is not limited to the 4G BTS project in remote areas, but in Palapa Ring and SATRIA Satellite, too, there must be thorough evaluation," she said.
This is to ensure that the development is effective and efficient.
Sularsi said that the network development undertaken by BAKTI is in accordance with President Widodo's directives in which he highlighted the importance of development as a foundation for a developed country.
Thus, it is time for the President to direct officials to formulate a funding mechanism for network development in remote areas, which is wholly accepted by the public.
She also called for a thorough evaluation of all the development commitments made by the telecommunications operator.
YLKI also urged the government to take firm action against operators who fail to uphold their commitment to national network development because the commitment has existed since the Law on Telecommunications came into being.
"If all operators have commitment to developing on a national scale, there should be no area with no telecommunications network," Sularsi said.
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Translator: M Zulfikar, Mecca Yumna
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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