Supreme Court Clarifies Presidential Remarks on Corruption Punishment
The Supreme Court (MA) has affirmed that President Prabowo‘s recent statement encouraging strict punishment for corruptors is not an interference from the executive branch into the legislative or judicial affairs. MA Spokesman and Chief Justice Yanto dismissed any suggestions of interference, stating, "His statement was along the lines of, ‘If it’s red, don’t make it green’. That’s not interference. He didn’t ask for leniency, so we don’t feel interfered with."
Yanto was responding to President Prabowo’s remarks at a Musrenbang event on December 30, 2024, where he criticized lenient sentences for corruption cases involving hundreds of trillions of rupiah. However, Yanto clarified that the President’s comments did not constitute interference but were expressions of hope for stringent penalties for big-time corruption.
The Supreme Court maintains that any punishment must adhere to existing laws and follow due legal processes. "If a corruption case is clearly proven and the scale is large, then a 50-year sentence would be appropriate. That’s not interference; it’s just reinforcement," Yanto explained.
Currently, the high-profile case against Harvey Moeis for bauxite ore smuggling is undergoing an appeal process, making the lower court’s verdict Neither Final nor Binding (inkrah) yet.
