The first change that the administration of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo could make to the Law No. 15/2006 regarding the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) would be related to the process of selecting BPK leaders. But the President should not stop at that. There are other provisions that can be amended. 

Amending the content of Article 14 of the BPK Law is important for it governs the process by which BPK leaders are selected. Many believe that the DPR has too much power in the matter as is. This has, some believe, resulted in a BPK that is being led by those with questionable integrity. Here’s the list of the current BPK board:

  • Harry Azhar Aziz, the Chief of the BPK, is a Golkar Party politician. Prior to serving as BPK Chief since 2014, he was Golkar lawmaker and member of the DPR Commission XXI, a commission in the DPR that selecting and electing the BPK’s board of leadership;
  • Sapto Amal Damandari, the Deputy Chief of the BPK, joined the BPK since July 2013. He may have close links with political parties due to his years of service as a special advisor to the DPR Commission XI. He was also the assistant of PDI-P politician and graft convict Izedrik Emir Moeis, who is also former Head of the DPR Commission XI;
  • Agung Firman Sampurna, the member I of the BPK, is the son of a Golkar politician. he has served as BPK member since July 2013;
  • Agus Joko Pramono, the member II of the BPK, joined the agency since August 2013. He replaced Taufiequrrahman Ruki. Agus was reportedly endorsed by Golkar in the selection process, but he denied the reports;
  • Eddy Mulyadi Soepardi, the member III of the BPK, joined the agency in September 2014. He defeated Nur Yasin, who is a PKB lawmaker and member of the DPR Commission VI, with a landslide victory in a second round of voting. Eddy was known as the Deputy Chief of Investigation at the BPKP. We don’t know of his political affiliation, but the fact that he beat a lawmaker may indicate that Eddy secured the votes of lawmakers from the Red-and-White opposition group (KMP) that at that time consisted of Gerindra, Golkar, PKS, PAN, and Djan Faridz’s PPP;
  • Rizal Djalil, the member IV of the BPK, reclaimed his seat at the BPK in September 2014. Rizal is former PAN lawmaker and considered as among the confidants of former PAN Chairman Hatta Rajasa, who is also father-in-law of SBY’s youngest son;
  • Moermahadi Soerja Djanegara, the member V of the BPK, also reclaimed his seat at the BPK in September 2014. Prior to serving at the BPK, he worked as a professional accountant;
  • Bahrullah Akbar, the member VI of the BPK, joined the BPK in 2011. He was appointed as member of the BPK to replace Golkar politician Teuku Muhammad Nurlif, who was sentenced to 1 year and 4 months imprisonment over a graft case related to the Bank Indonesia’s traveler’s cheque scandal. Bahrullah reportedly secured the endorsement of Golkar, SBY’s Democratic Party, and PDI-P in his selection process but he denied the reports. Prior to his appointment, he was a senior auditor at the BPK;
  • Achsanul Qosasi, the member VII of the BPK. He was a member of the DPR Commission XI similar to Harry Azhar Aziz when elected by the Commission for becoming one of BPK’s member in September 2014. Achsanul is a politician from SBY’s Democratic Party.

As you can see, the majority of those in the current leadership have crystal clear connection to political parties. This means there’s a high risk of conflict of interest. So amending Article 14 by putting in place a new selection mechanism could bring the much needed objectivity into one of Indonesia’s key institutions. But beyond that, the Government should also look into revising Article 13 regarding the requirements for becoming a leader of the BPK. Jokowi’s administration could submit a clause barring politicians and those with familial ties from joining the BPK. But this will not be an easy battle.

The President may have to come up with a win-win solution: such as barring those who’ve been a member of political parties in the past 5-10 years, instead of barring everyone affiliated with political parties in general. This is an option worth pursuing, especially if Jokowi’s goal is to create an independent, professional, and reliable BPK. And given that BPK member Bahrullah Akbar will end his term this year, the President has an opportunity to push for the change and see the difference.

In addition to that, Jokowi’s administration should also consider the option of reducing the number of BPK leaders. The BPK Board currently consists of one chief, one deputy chief, and seven members. The Government can propose to cut this number down to three leaders in the Board for the sake of efficiency.

By Haryanto Suharman

Copying, redistributing, and retransmitting this article is a violation of copyrights.