Member of Commission III of the Indonesian House of Representatives, Hasbiallah Ilyas, hopes that all parties will respect the applicable legal process, including providing space for the Judicial Commission (KY) to work independently in following up on Trade Minister Thomas Trikasih Lembong's report regarding the judge who heard his case.
He emphasized that the KY has the authority to investigate alleged ethical violations and judicial behavior.
"The Judicial Commission (KY) has a mandate to uphold the honor, dignity, and behavior of judges. Therefore, we are giving the KY space to work, while still upholding the principle of the presumption of innocence," said Hasbi, as he is familiarly known, in a statement received in Jakarta on Tuesday.
According to him, Tom Lembong had the right to file the report. Therefore, he respects Tom Lembong's steps in reporting the three judges who sentenced him to the Judicial Commission (KY).
As a citizen, he believes that Tom Lembong has the freedom to seek justice through legitimate mechanisms, as long as it is accompanied by strong supporting evidence.
"We respect Mr. Tom Lembong's actions. As a citizen, he has the right to report to the Judicial Commission, but of course, the report must be accompanied by strong evidence so that it can be followed up according to procedure," he said.
He also reminded that criticism or reports against law enforcement officers should be conducted constructively and in accordance with applicable regulations in order to maintain public trust in the justice system.
It is known that in the sugar import corruption case at the Ministry of Trade in 2015–2016, Tom Lembong was sentenced to 4 years and 6 months in prison after being found guilty of committing a criminal act of corruption, which caused state financial losses of IDR 194.72 billion.
The criminal acts of corruption committed by Tom Lembong included issuing letters of application or approval for the import of raw crystal sugar for the 2015–2016 period to 10 companies without being based on inter-ministerial coordination meetings and without being accompanied by recommendations from the Ministry of Industry.
