Ex-CCP employee urges suspect Thomas to call sugar import ‘mafia’ – Politics

“Tom Lembong must become an officer of justice,” Yudi Purnomo said in a written statement on Thursday, as quoted by the newspaper Compass.comreferring to the Harvard-educated politician by his nickname.

Last month, the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) named Thomas as a suspect in a corruption case related to a sugar import deal in 2015 while he was trade minister.

Thomas reportedly granted permission to a private company known as PT AP to import 105,000 tonnes of raw sugar, which was subsequently processed into white crystalline sugar.

Current rules stipulate that only a state-owned enterprise can import sugar, while an inter-ministerial meeting determined that Indonesia has a surplus of sugar and does not need to import the commodity.

Youdy also said the ongoing investigation into the case, spanning nearly nine years, suggests the possibility of a wider network of corruption in the sector. If so, he said, Thomas would likely know the key players involved in the decision-making process, including the official who signed the import permits.

Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning.

Delivered straight to your inbox three times a week, this hand-picked briefing provides a snapshot of the day’s most important issues, covering a range of topics from politics to culture and society.

for subscribing to our newsletter!

Please check your email for newsletter subscription information.

View more newsletter

He called on Thomas to cooperate with authorities and provide any relevant information to prevent a similar incident, arguing that allowing at least eight private companies to import sugar resulted in losses to the government of about 400 billion rupees ($25.5 million).

“By cooperating, Thomas will be able to not only protect his innocence, but also expose those who took advantage of the system,” Youdy said in a statement.

The former KPK investigator also asked the AGO to investigate the sugar import case more thoroughly and not stop at naming Thomas as a suspect. He stressed the importance of eliminating all alleged corruption networks to ensure that future sugar imports follow established procedures.

The AGO also named the business director of state trading firm PT Perusahaan Perdagangan Indonesia, known as CS, as a suspect in the case.