KPK to Step Up Regional Monitoring With New Branch Offices

Jakarta Globe, Dec 15, 2014

A visitor looks at an exhibition as part of an anti-corruption festival at Gadjah
 Mada University (UGM) earlier this month. (Antara Photo/Noveradika)

Jakarta. The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) plans to start opening branches across the archipelago next year in order to improve its supervision of regional governments, one of its leaders has announced.

Bambang Widjojanto, a deputy chairman at the KPK, said on Sunday evening that the anti-graft body was considering opening one branch office in Sumatra next year, as part of its plan to open at least five branch offices throughout Indonesia in the next ten years.

“We’ve decided to open a representative office in one of the provinces in Sumatra in 2015,” said Bambang, as cited by Tempo. “We’re still studying in which province we should build our office.”

Bambang said that the branch office would focus on preventing corruption in the local government. He also said that the KPK would recruit local people to help them fight against corruption at the regional level.

“We’re sure that there will be many agents of change. We need a renewed spirit in eradicating corruption,” he said.

The chairman of Commission III of the House of Representatives, Benny K. Harman, said he fully supported the KPK’s proposal.

“We’ll definitely support the KPK. It’s a good plan, and it needs to be implemented right away,” Benny said on Monday.