Pertamina not yet hand over 159 KKN cases to Attorney General's Office

Attorney General Marzuki Darusman said that state oil firm Pertamina had not yet formally handed over the 159 projects with strong indications of corruption, collusion and nepotism practices, or locally known as KKN, to his office.

Marzuki noted that Pertamina only informally presented the 159 cases to his office. "As it is informal, our role is only to give assistance (to Pertamina to handle the cases)."

He complained that Pertamina just threw the graft cases to his office without trying hard to investigate the cases by themselves. "Everything is dumped here."

Marzuki said that with such informal handover of the 159 cases, his office faced difficulties in finding graft indications in all those cases as the date presented to his office were very minimal.

He suggested that Pertamina investigate first all those cases, and after it found strong indications of grafts, the cases were presented officially to the Attorney General's Office.

"Otherwise, our office will again be accused of supporting the status quo," he said.

He added that the public should blame Pertamina on the handling of those KKN cases, and not the Attorney General's Office.

Marzuki reported to the House of Representatives' Commission VIII last Thursday that that his office found indications of KKN in 34 out of the 159 projects in Pertamina his office was investigating.

Out of the 34 projects, 9 projects had reached the pre-expose stage at the Attorney General's Office with positive indications of KKN, 2 projects had been investigated but not yet entered the pre-expose stage, 2 other projects were under investigation, and 21 projects were also still under investigation, but no significant KKN indications had been found in the 21 projects.

Meanwhile, legislator Pramono Anung from Commission VIII accused Pertamina as not serious in handling rampant KKN practices in the state firm.

He even accused Pertamina of trying to divert public perception and opinion on the state oil firm by creating "reform and restructuring" slogan in the company. He noted that it would take years for Pertamina to clean its operation from KKN practices as old people who supported KKN practices in the past were still there.

"Pertamina's slogan to eradicate KKN practices is only a lips' service," he said. (*)