Jakarta (ANTARA) - Losses incurred by the state in the alleged corruption case involving the procurement of personal protective equipment (PPE) at the Ministry of Health have reached hundreds of billions of rupiah, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) stated on Friday.

"So far, state losses are estimated to reach hundreds of billions of rupiah. This number is predicted to increase," said Ali Fikri, head of the KPK Publication Department.

He stated that investigation is currently underway, with several parties named as suspects.

"We will announce the identity of the suspects when they are detained," he noted.

Fikri expressed regret that significant government funds allocated to protect public safety and health during the pandemic had been misused through corrupt practices.

Additionally, he invited the public to follow the developments in the case as a demonstration of KPK's transparency and public involvement in eradicating corruption.

KPK announced on Thursday that it had initiated an investigation into alleged corruption in the procurement of PPE at the Ministry of Health.

KPK Deputy Chairman Alexander Marwata conveyed this during a press conference at the KPK Building on Thursday evening.

"Are there any suspects in the PPE procurement case? Yes," Marwata stated.

The corruption case is suspected to have occurred in the ministry's PPE procurement in 2020.

However, Marwata has yet to announce the suspects in the case. He has also not provided detailed information regarding the corruption case.

"Yes, we have identified the suspects, and we already have all the names," he remarked.

He noted that details regarding the case, including the suspect, the construction of the case, and other aspects, will be announced when the investigation is declared complete, and the suspect will be detained.

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Translator: Fianda Sjofjan Rassat, Resinta Sulistiyandari
Editor: Anton Santoso
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