BPK May Launch Investigative Audit

KOMPAS/RYAN RINALDY

Workers take a construction elevator to resume their work after their lunch break on Tuesday (6/3) at the site of the Bekasi-Cawang-Kampung Melayu (Becakayu) toll road project. Construction has resumed on the project after it was temporarily halted following the collapse of a pier head on Tuesday (20/2).

JAKARTA, KOMPAS – Reducing the volume of materials or not adhering to technical specifications in infrastructure projects may lead not only to workplace accidents, but also to allegations of corruption. The Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) may launch an investigative audit into construction accidents that have occurred in infrastructure project and into the state-owned enterprises that oversee the projects.

The collapse of a pier head on Feb. 20 in the Bekasi-Cawang-Kampung Melayu (Becakayu) toll road project on Jl. DI Panjaitan in East Jakarta was reportedly caused by the reduced number of steel tension rods the were used in the formwork.

Trisakti University criminal law expert Abdul Fickar Hadjar said that any reduction in the volume of construction materials or ignoring the technical specifications of the government’s infrastructure projects may be deemed corruption. This was even more relevant in state-financed projects overseen by state-owned enterprises (SOEs).

“As [the project budget] is part of state finances, the BPK may launch an investigative audit into projects carried out by state-owned enterprises. The construction collapse on the Becakayu toll road may indicate [corruption],” he said.

At the accident site at point PCB 34 on the toll road, it was found that only four steel rods were used to bind the brackets for the pier-head formwork. According to the original design in the Public Works and Housing Ministry’s Improvement Method report, 12 steel rods should have been used to bind the brackets.

The design of these 12 steel rods is based on calculations of the brackets’ ability to support the combined weight of 320 tons of materials. Becakayu toll road project manager PT Waskita Karya claimed that only four steel rods were used to bind the bracket at point PCB 34. However, project contractor PT Waskita Karya’s Division III head, Dono Parwoto, denied that the number of steel rods had been reduced.

“There is no profit to be made in reducing the number of bolts. We’re talking about risking a toll road formwork that costs Rp 1 billion (US$70,000). We have SOPs [standard operating procedures], it is impossible to reduce [materials],” Dono said.

PT Kresna Kusuma Dyandra Marga (KKDM) project leader Herarto Startiono said that the volume of construction materials had been reduced not to make any profit, but in order to accelerate the toll road’s construction. “This is the way contractors work. They don’t seek profit, they look for the quickest way,” he said.

Waskita Karya operations director II Nyoman Wirya Adnyana said the company had improved the supporting, or shoring, system used in constructing the pier head by adhering to the Construction Safety Committee’s recommendations. Nyoman said he guaranteed that every stage of the work could be completed safely, on time and in line with quality standards.

“We have improved our working and safety methods,” he said.

PT KKDM engineering director Purma Yose Rizal said that the company would follow up with positive improvements to ensure that the construction on the toll road project proceeded.

Separately, Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) deputy chair of graft prevention Pahala Nainggolan said that, based on the KPK’s research, corruption in road infrastructure projects began at the planning stage by increasing the temporary price estimates (HPS). The proceeds from corruption typically amounted to 30 percent of the project’s total value.

SOEs could directly appoint subcontractors or supervisory consultants during the planning stage, while the project design and the HPS are determined unilaterally. “No one challenges whether or not the design is properly conceived,” Pahala said.

(ADY/BKY/ILO/DD05/MDN)