The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) recently announced that they had named two new suspects in the Budget Mafia case. A few days after the announcement, the investigators raided the residence and the office of the Mayor of Dumai. The Mayor's name was mentioned...

Despite the confusing situation of the dispute related to the debt-claiming rights (cessie) involving PT Geria Wijaya Prestige (GWP) and several other parties, the trials of the lawsuits filed in two different district courts related to the case are ongoing. The recent hearing reported by the press was held by the Central Jakarta District Court to examine the lawsuit filed by Tomy Winata.

Back in February 2019, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) announced that they named two new suspects in the development of investigation into the Budget Mafia case which they uncovered last year. The new suspects including the Acting Head of Public Work Department of the regency of Arfak Mountains in West Papua. Now two months after the announcement, the KPK revealed that they have named yet another suspect in the case, he is the Mayor of Tasikmalaya one Budi Budiman. This is not surprising actually given that the previous trials already revealed a lot. But note that there are dozens of municipalities allegedly involved in the case, so we expect to hear more names mentioned by the KPK as suspects in the case.

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) conducted a Sting Operation in the evening of November 27, 2018 and arrested six people in the South Jakarta District Court. On November 28, 2018, towards midnight, the KPK announced the chronology of the operation and subsequently named several suspects in the case, including two judges of the same district court and one registrar from a different district court. The trials of the defendants begin this month.

The dispute between PT Kawasan Berikat Nusantara (Persero) (KBN) and PT Karya Citra Nusantara (KCN) will not be over anytime soon. The Government through the Task Force for the Acceleration and Effectiveness of Economic Policy Implementation chaired by the Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Darmin Nasution did give recommendations on the dispute, but the dispute has been taken to the criminal realm. The President Director of KBN one Sattar Taba is under investigation. All of this are happening in addition to the examination of the lawsuit filed by KBN.

After being delayed for several days, on April 23, 2019, the Panel of Judges of the Corruption Court of the Central Jakarta District Court read the verdict for the former Minister of Social Affairs Idrus Marham was stands trial as a defendant in the Riau Power Plant graft case. The judges declared Idrus guilty but sentenced him with a lighter punishment compared to the punishment demanded by the prosecutors. Several hours after the court read their verdict, the KPK announced that they had named the President Director of PT PLN (Persero) Sofyan Basir a suspect.

Three years ago, investigators of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) raided the residence of one Edison Marudut Marsadauli Siahaan. Edison, who is a businessman and a cadre of the Democratic Party, is involved in a bribery related to the conversion of forest land that had ensnared the disgraced Governor of Riau Annas Maamun. Three years has passed and recently we learned that Surya Darmadi, the owner of Duta Palma Group whose name was mentioned repeatedly for allegedly providing bribes in the case, had filed a lawsuit against the KPK. Surya filed a pre-trial lawsuit questioning the KPK’s decision to name him as suspect.

Last week the Central Jakarta District Court registered a lawsuit on Suspension of Debts Payment (PKPU) filed by PT Kalimantan Berlian Sejahtera, a contractor, against PT Karya Makmur Abadi (a subsidiary of Kuala Lumpur Kepong Berhad – KLK). The lawsuit is interesting because we thought that the KLK was doing okay in the palm oil business so far, but perhaps big companies are not immune to lawsuits.

In mid-2018, PT Maspion filed a lawsuit at the Surabaya State Administrative Court (PTUN Surabaya) against the Mayor of Surabaya. The lawsuit was filed because the city government had refused the company’s request to extend the validity of the certificate on Rights to Build (HGB) that applied to land and buildings used by the company. The city government apparently wanted to use the land for a project and thought that Maspion did not use its rights as it should have. Moreover, the city government claims that the Company submitted the application for the extension of the validity period of the HGB beyond the time limit specified in the regulation. But Maspion has a different version of the story. At the end of March 2019, the East Java State Administrative High Court (PTTUN) ruled in favor of Maspion, but the city government refuses to accept defeat.