"We are glad that KPK Chief Busyro Muqoddas has told us today that there would be no safe room for those who are involved in the Gayus`s case," Febri Diansyah of the Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) said after a meeting with the KPK chairman on TuesdJakarta (ANTARA News) - The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has vowed to settle this year the tax mafia case involving former taxman Gayus HP Tambunan, including other corruption cases such as the Rp6.7 trillion bail-out case of Bank Century.
"We are glad that KPK Chief Busyro Muqoddas has told us today that there would be no safe room for those who are involved in the Gayus`s case," Febri Diansyah of the Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) said after a meeting with the KPK chairman on Tuesday.
The anti-graft body`s determination to have settled all corruption cases this year came up after the KPK received representatives of 99 institutions and public figures who asked its commitment to investigating Gayus`s judicial and tax mafia case.
"We agreed to finish all corruption cases, old and new ones. We are determined to finish them so that they would not become a burden for the next KPK leadership," KPK Chairman Busyro Muqoddas said after the meeting.
He said that the anti-graft body would do its best to accomplish the investigation of Bank Century, the alleged bribery case in the election of Bank Indonesia (BI)`s senior deputy governor and Gayus`s tax mafia case.
Gayus, a former tax official who is believed to have collected assets worth Rp200 billion, has been sentenced to seven years in jail and a fine of Rp300 million for proven guilty of tax fraud.
However, Gayus`s case is believed to have involved a mafia network within the taxation office and other offices of law enforcing institutions.
In response to the presence of representatives of 99 institutions and public figures, the KPK chairman said that his commission would stick to its principle in fighting corruption.
"KPK will stick to its principles. In fighting against corruption, there will be no political pressures that could halt its efforts," Busyro Muqoddas said.
He vowed that KPK would take a firm action based on the law against whoever were proven guilty. There would be no zones of safety for corrupters in this country.
Febri Diansyah who is ICW`s legal division coordinator said that the KPK should not hesitate and should not adopt a divided attitude in facing the judicial and tax mafia of Gayus Tambunan.
Febri who represented the 99 institutions and public figures said that in the meeting with the KPK chairman the representatives and public figures submitted to the KPK a three-point people demands against lies, corruption eradication and fight against mafia.
They demanded that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono directly lead the fight against corruption, judicial and tax mafia. They also asked for the cleaning of police and prosecution institutions as well as the court, the directorate general of taxation and the ministry of law and human rights from officials implicated the judicial mafia.
The third demand was that KPK, together with police and the prosecutor office, should lead and finish the investigation of Gayus tax scandal case and tax dodger firms.
For this, all law enforcing institutions should cooperate and work together in handling Gayus`s tax mafia case. "In this case, one should not maintain his or sectoral egoism because otherwise it would not settle the problem," National Resilience Institute (Lemhanas) Governor Muladi said meanwhile.
According to Muladi, the Gayus case could be settled immediately if all sides were firm, professional and wanted to work together. "I don`t think the Gayus case is difficult to solve as long as we are professional and firm because it is already clear what has to be done with that case," he said.
He said that law enforcers could investigate 149 companies whose tax obligations were handled by Gayus. "They should be investigated one by one involving an independent and expert team. If the prosecutor office is unable to do so, leave it to the KPK," Muladi said.
The corruption case of Gayus and the alleged tax fraud he has committed when he handled 149 tax-payer companies have so far not yet disclosed. Therefore, it is expected that with the involvement of the KPK in investigating the Gayus case would help solve the problem.
"Of course we welcome if the KPK is involved in the investigation of Gayus case," Vice President Boediono was quoted as saying by his spokesman Yopie Hidayat on Wednesday.
In this context, the vice president will summons the KPK and its ranks and files so that they would build a synergy in handling the Gayus case. "The vice president will summons and ask the KPK to take part and indiscriminately investigate the case of Gayus," said Yopie.
The same voice was also expressed by Chief Minister for Political and Security Affairs Djoko Suyanto. He said his side would involve the KPK in settling the alleged Gayus tax mafia case. "KPK is asked to investigate it because corruption is KPK`s authority to investigate," he said.
In the meantime, KPK Deputy Bibit Samad Rianto explained that Gayus`s judicial and tax mafia case was divided into two parts, namely Gayus`s legal case itself and the question why he violated regulations.
"The second one is related to the system in the taxation directorate general," he said.
He said that Gayus`s legal case was also divided into two, namely the involvement of his colleagues in the judicial and tax mafia case and the attempt of Gayus to avoid legal punishment.
Rianto said that KPK would follow up the investigation into the flow of money in the Gayus`s case, not in his attempt to escape from jail.(*)
Reporter: By Andi Abdussalam
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2011
