On March 22, 2017, the public prosecutors of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) read their demands for Amran HI Mustary, the former Head of the IX National Roads Implementing Board (BPJN IX), who is now a defendant in the Trans-Seram graft case. The case has so far had brought down 10 people, including the former member of the House Commission V of the House of Representatives Damayanti Wisnu Putranti (PDI-P) and the President Director of PT Windhu Tunggal Utama Abdul Khoir, but investigation continues.

What we can summarize from the case so far is that the KPK believes that Amran Mustary initiated communication between the parties back in 2015. Amran is accused of deliberately alluring Abdul Khoir with the prospect of winning construction projects, which would be funded with the aspiration funds of the member of the House Commission V of the House of Representatives.

What started as a small scheme involving road construction projects in a small island in Maluku supposedly became a huge scheme involving the leaders and almost half of the members of the House Commission V, with politicians, officials in the Ministry of Public Works, and even regional leaders as suspected benefactors of graft money.

The Public Prosecutor believes that Amran persuaded the members of the House Commission V to use their aspiration fund for the Trans-Seram road construction in exchange for a compensation fee of 6 percent of the projects’ value for each politician. The proposal was supposedly first brought up when the Commission visited North Maluku in mid-2015. At the time, Amran introduce Abdul Khoir to Muhammad Toha (PKB) and Amran asked Abdul Khoir to give pocket money for the members of the House Commission. After that, Amran told Abdul Khoir and several company owners that he would do everything he could to make sure that their companies would win the road construction projects supervised by BPJN IX. The company owners was asked to compensate members of the House Commission V. Details as follow:

  1. Rp6.6 billion and SG$202,816 from Abdul Khoir;
  2. Rp4.98 billion from the Commissioner of PT Cahaya Mas Perkasa (CMP) So Kok Seng a.k.a A Seng a.k.a Franky Harman Tanaya;
  3. Rp1.5 billion from Director of PT Sharleen Raya (JECO Group) Hong Artha John Alfred;
  4. Rp1.5 billion from Director of PT Labrosco Yal Djonny Laos;
  5. Rp500 million from the Commissioner of PT Papua Putra Mandiri Henock Setiawan a.k.a Rino;
  6. Rp500 million from Director of PT Reza Multi Sarana Rizal;
  7. Rp1 billion from Director of PT Intimkara Budi Liem;
  8. Rp1 billion from Director of PT Aibinabi Hasanuddin;
  9. Rp400 million from Director of CV Gema Gamahera Anfiqurahman;
  10. Rp1.2 billion from Director of PT Hijrah Nusatama Hadiruddin; and
  11. Rp600 million from the Director of CV Putra Mandiri Charles Franz a.k.a Carlos.

Amran used the money he received to help the current Regent of North Halmahera Rudi Erawan (PDI-P) in his campaign back in 2015. Several national media stated that Rudi received Rp200 million from Amran, but the Halmahera local news portal stated that Rudi asked for more than Rp3.5 billion from Amran with help from one Imran S. Jumadil for the campaign in Halmahera and Ternate. It was later revealed that the money Rudi received in total amounted to Rp6.1 billion.

Apart from receiving money for the projects, Amran supposedly use the money for his succession as the Head of BPJN IX. The scheme he used back in 2015 was by handing out holiday allowances for the officials in the Directorate General of Highway of the Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing. In the hearing held on February 22, 2017, we learned that Amran had supposedly given away Rp750 million for a total of 25 Head of Sub-Directorate in the Directorate General. In the hearing, the prosecutors presented 5 witnesses, all of whom are officials who had received money from Amran. All witnesses admitted to receiving the allowances in question.

And so with the facts presented in the trial so far, the public prosecutors are getting even more convinced that Amran played an important role in the case. And so in the hearing held on March 22, 2017, the public prosecutors asked the court to punish Amran to 9 years in prison with the obligation to pay Rp1 billion in fine subsidiary 6 months in prison. T

To this day, the case have dragged in 10 suspects, including 5 member of the House Commission V from 5 different political parties. The suspected briber are Abdul Khoir and A Seng. Abdul was found guilty and sentenced to 4 years imprisonment. KPK, however, filed an appeal arguing that the sentence handed to Abdul was too harsh because he played a role as Justice Collaborator. The Jakarta High Court decided to lower Abdul’s sentences to 2 years and 6 months in prison in November 2016. A Seng was named a suspect on December 7, 2016 and is still under investigation.

On the receiving end, besides Amran, there are:

  1. Damayanti (PDI-P), who was convicted to 4 years and 6 months imprisonment in September 2016;
  2. Dessy A. Edwin and Julia Prasetyarini, who were convicted to 4 years imprisonment respectively;
  3. Budi Supriyanto (Golkar), who was convicted to 5 years imprisonment;
  4. Andi Taufan Tiro (PAN) who was named as suspect in April 2016 and is currently under trial;
  5. Musa Zainuddin (PKB) who was named as suspect in February 2017; and
  6. Yudi Widiana (PKS) who also was named as suspect in February 2017.

The latest update is that Andi Taufan had admitted to distributing bribes to his peers in the House Commission V (not the leaders). Andi Taufan also admitted that he once received Rp1.1 billion from Amran.

By Pradnya Paramitha

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