Irawaty Wardany, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Thu, 12/17/2009 8:46 am
The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) promised to follow up reports on alleged corruption in the issuance of a letter to halt an investigation against PT Lapindo Brantas.
The report was filed by the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) and related to the mudflow in Sidoarjo, East Java, allegedly caused by Lapindo’s drilling activities.
“We will follow up every report filed to us,” KPK spokesman Johan Budi said as quoted by detik.com on Wednesday.
Walhi reported Tuesday that there may be corruption behind the distribution of Rp 4 trillion (US$422.49 million) of state money allocated to compensate victims of the Lapindo mudflow by the government since 2007.
“Distribution of the compensation money has legal and procedural flaws because it was distributed before [the mudflow] had been determined to be the result of corporate negligence or natural disaster,” Walhi spokesman Erwin Usman said Wednesday.
Walhi and the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) brought a lawsuit against the company at the South Jakarta District Court and Central Jakarta District Court in 2007.
However both courts ruled in favor of Lapindo.
Both organizations later appealed to the Supreme Court, which also rejected the charges against the private oil and gas company partly owned by the family of then coordinating minister for the people’s welfare, Aburizal Bakrie.
Aburizal is currently chairman of the Golkar Party.
Erwin said the 2007 audit report conducted by the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) also showed legal loopholes in the distribution of the compensation money.
Johan said the KPK had recommended that the government not hurriedly disburse the compensation using state money, without guarantees from Lapindo that it would reimburse the money if the mudflow was proven to have been caused by the company’s negligence.
However, the President issued a presidential decree in 2007 establishing the Sidoarjo Mudflow Controlling Board (BPLS) and stipulating, among other things, the mudflow victims will receive compensation for damaged houses and land in installments.
The decree also stipulated that part of the compensation will be paid by the government.
The Sidoarjo mudflow in Sidoarjo’s Porong district, which occurred at a Lapindo exploratory drilling site, began as an eruption of gas and mud in May 2006.
Mud continues to flow to this day.
The outflow has buried thousands of houses, rice fields and factories but Lapindo has not yet payed any compensation.
Walhi said it was the government, which has spent more than Rp 4 trillion, had replaced the company’s responsibility.
“We suspect there might be abuse of power in this case. Therefore we ask the KPK to start investigate,” Erwin said.
He added the KPK was the only legal enforcer they could count on since other legal institutions had washed their hands of the case.
“We also ask the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center [PPATK] to track the distribution of funds from Lapindo to senior officers at the Attorney General’s Office and the police,” he said.
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