ID Nugroho and Indra Harsaputra , The Jakarta Post , Surabaya | Fri, 02/06/2009 8:54 AM | The Archipelago
The East Java Police have detained a former Surabaya city official, six civil servants and 40 brokers who were allegedly involved in systematic payoffs at the city's vehicle roadworthiness inspection unit.
The provincial police spokesperson, Sr. Comr. Pudji Astuti, said detectives were also investigating the involvement of Surabaya Transportation Agency head Bunari Mushofa, still considered a witness in the case.
"Following a recent raid of his residence in Sidoarjo, Bunari is expected to be detained as a principal suspect," she told a conference Thursday.
Pudji, who was accompanied by the lead detective for corruption investigations Adj. Sr. Comr. Anton Sasono, said a former head of that transportation agency, Mas Bambang Supriyadi, and another employee at the roadworthy testing (PKB) unit had been declared suspects in the case Thursday.
The two were named after police had interrogated some suspects and carried out a search and seizure Wednesday at Mas' home where the police confiscated Rp 15 million (US$1,286), a TV set and a bicycle.
Police also rounded up six civil servants - identified as PP, ED, AR, MS, AZ and RR - and 40 brokers after raiding the PKB unit in Surabaya's Wiyung district sometime mid-January. The police confiscated a stash of cash and documents in that raid.
Earlier, the police had also detained four employees caught red-handed imposing illegal levies on truck drivers and expediters needing export and import documents at the seaport of Tanjung Perak.
Separately, the Surabaya City Council has asked the police not to focus only on illegal levies at public transportation services but also to crack down on illegal fees at all public service points to eradicate corruption in the city administration.
Council member Yulyani, who sits on Commission B for budgets and economic affairs, said law enforcers should process corruptors and those paying bribes in an effort to eradicate widespread corrupt practices.
"The city should at the same time revamp the transportation agency with the hope that other units might follow suit."
Yulyani said regular vehicle roadworthiness tests were no longer needed since the city has been enforcing its 2008 air pollution bylaw requiring authorities to revoke the registrations of polluting vehicles.
In contradiction, the city is still applying bylaw 6/2002 which requires all vehicles, including new ones, to undergo a roadworthiness test at the Wiyung facility. That inspection was designed to be so complicated that vehicle owners or drivers would come up with payoffs to speed vehicle certification.
Police investigations reveal that between Rp 20 million and Rp 30 million from the inflated fees were paid to the Wiyung facility head and the city transportation agency head.
In a related development, Transparency International Indonesia (TII) announced a recent survey has found Surabaya to be the most corrupt city in East Java as compared to other cities including Malang, Jember and Kediri.
The findings were based on questionnaires TII conducted with businesspeople, informal leaders and public officials to put together the NGO's Corruption Perception Index (IPK) for 2008. (sal)
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