Dominating news headlines in Indonesia this morning is the Corruption Eradication Commission’s (KPK) arrests of several people related to Meikarta, the Lippo Group’s massive US$20 billion property development located in the Jakarta satellite regency of Bekasi, West Java.
After news broke yesterday afternoon that the KPK had arrested 9 people as part of an investigation into bribery related to licensing for the mega-project, the anti-corruption taskforce later confirmed that Bekasi Regent Neneng Hassanah and several senior Lippo Group executives were among those being charged.
According to the KPK, Neneng was allegedly promised IDR13 billion (US$850,000) by Lippo Group, although only IDR7 billion has so far been disseminated to Neneng through a number of four other Bekasi Government officials who were also named suspects.
The KPK also named four Lippo Group employees as suspects, including operational director Billy Sindoro.
KPK Deputy Chair Laode M Syarif said the investigation into the Meikarta case began back in November 2017 after they received reports from the public regarding irregularities in the licensing process for the mega project.
Lippo Group has been heavily touting the Meikarta project as a “city of the future” and an alternative for those dissatisfied with living in Jakarta. But even before the KPK arrests, the project had been dogged by reports about stalled construction, slow sales and accusations of broken promises.
