Jailed politician marks turning point in war on graft

JAKARTA: A hefty 15-year prison term for one of Indonesia’s top politicians, who allegedly even staged a car crash to evade arrest, could be a turning point in the country’s war on corruption, observers say, as anger boils over against powerful figures living above the law.

Setya Novanto’s case sparked a mix of rage and disbelief as the disgraced house speaker tried to dodge arrest on graft charges, capped by his suspicious crash into a utility pole shortly after his palatial estate was raided.

The car accident – widely believed to have been engineered – landed Novanto in a Jakarta hospital bed with medical tubes up his nose, apparently one step ahead of pursuing anti-corruption investigators.

The images sparked a flurry of mocking online memes, including the popular #SaveTiangListrik (save the electric pole) hashtag.

It later emerged that Novanto’s now-indicted lawyer had booked his hospital room before the accident happened.

The 62-year-old – hailed by Donald Trump as one of Indonesia’s most powerful men several years ago – then unsuccessfully claimed that a bout of diarrhoea left him unable to take part in his trial.

On Tuesday, he was hit with one of Indonesia’s heaviest sentences for corruption after being convicted of taking millions of dollars in kickbacks linked to the national roll-out of government ID cards.

Novanto, dubbed Mr Teflon, had escaped corruption allegations before – including being caught on tape trying to extort a US-based miner – and his conviction marked the highest-profile victory in recent memory for Indonesia’s Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).

“I think this is a milestone for the Corruption Eradication Commission and the anti-corruption movement,” said Adnan Topan, coordinator for the non-profit Indonesia Corruption Watch.