JAKARTA, (Reuters) – A junior Indonesian tax official whose testimony in a corruption trial and exploits out of court shocked a nation normally used to excess was jailed for seven years yesterday in a case analysts say tests the country’s commitment to tackling graft.
The saga of Gayus Tambunan, who had earlier been found guilty of bribery and misusing his position, has both entertained and scandalised a nation used to paying backhanders for even routine government services, as well as multi-million dollar graft by officials.
Among Gayus’s more daring exploits was to attend a tennis tournament in Bali — while supposedly in detention awaiting sentencing — disguised in a wig.
Gayus, who was also fined 300 million rupiah (around $34,000), now faces a slew of other charges and has threatened to provide evidence and testimony that could bring down scores of high profile officials.
While prosecutors had demanded a 20-year jail term, Gayus thanked the judge for not being swayed by outside influences and accused authorities of going back on their word to protect him if he turned whistleblower.
“The judges have decided purely on the indictments, unlike other parties who have … caused an impression I am the number one crook in Indonesia,” he told a melee of reporters before being led away to return to detention.
Indonesia’s economy has ridden out the global financial crisis and become a magnet for emerging market investors keen to tap into a commodity- and resource-rich country offering returns that are the envy of the West.
But corruption remains a major impediment, adds millions of dollars to start-up and operating costs and frequently slows infrastructure projects. Indonesia lay in 110th place last year in Transparency International’s corruption perception index.
Another graft watchdog group said the Gayus case was just the tip of the iceberg.
“What we need to see today is that Gayus is just a small fraction of a big mafia network,” said Donal Fariz of Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW). “I believe there are bigger things being kept in the closet.”
