The vice governor-elect of Jakarta, Sandiaga Uno, arrived at the headquarters of the Corruption Eradication Committee (KPK) at around 10am this morning to undergo questioning in regards to two outstanding corruption cases related to a construction company in which he formerly held the position of commissioner.
The KPK’s head of public relations, Febri Diansyah, said Sandiaga was being questioned as a witness in two cases of alleged corruption, specifically the construction of Udayana University Hospital, which took place from 2009-2011, and the South Sumatra regional government’s Athletic Development and Multipurpose Building, which took place from 2010-2011.
In regards to the hospital corruption case, Sandiaga is being questioned as a witness as he was the commissioner to the construction company involved, Duta Graha Indah (PT DGI). The former president director of PT DGI, Dudung Purwadi, has been named a suspect in the case. The KPK believes there is evidence that Rp 30 billion out of the total Rp 120 billion budget for the hospital’s construction was misappropriated through budget markups.
In his role as commissioner, Sandiaga was essentially one of Dudung’s direct superiors. KPK spokesperson Febri did not specify what Sandiaga would be questioned about today in regards to the case but noted that the future vice governor would have known lots of things regarding PT DGI’s projects.
Dudung is suspected of having similarly misappropriated funds from the South Sumatra construction project, which were then funneled into a money laundering scheme involving Garuda stock. Sandiaga was previously questioned by the KPK in regards to that case in 2013.
Febri denied that the questioning had anything to do with politics and was simply a necessary part of their investigation.
“We separate the political and legal process and we are going through the legal process,” Febri said as quoted by CNN Indonesia today.
Even if Sandiaga was not involved in any way with the misappropriation of funds at PT DGI, the fact that such large-scale fiscal malfeasance took place under his watch as the company’s commissioner should raise serious doubts over his ability to fight the endemic corruption in the Jakarta City Council in his role as vice governor.
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