Indonesian minister detained on graft charges
GBNEWS24 DESK//
Indonesia’s Anti-graft commission detained Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Edhy Prabowo in the early hours of Wednesday.
The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) deputy chairman Nawawi Pomolango confirmed a sting took place on Wednesday morning but did not elaborate, reports The Jakarta Post.
“It is true, we detained a number of people last night and early this morning,” Nawawi said as quoted by kompas.com.
Separately, KPK deputy chairman Nurul Ghufron said investigators had arrested Edhy alongside a number of ministry officials. They are undergoing questioning at the KPK, he said. “[The arrests] are related to lobster seed exports,” Ghufron said as quoted by Kompas TV.
Edhy rolled back earlier this year a ban on lobster larvae exports put in place by his predecessor Susi Pudjiastuti in 2016, sparking criticism from the former minister and fishery watchdogs over sustainability concerns.
He announced the plan to reverse Susi’s policy in December last year, saying he would resume the export of lobster larvae to Vietnam due to high demand for the commodity in the fellow Southeast Asian country.
A Gerindra Party politician, Edhy was appointed by President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to fill the ministerial post in late October last year, following the incumbent’s reelection. Ghufron said further details regarding the circumstances surrounding the case and the minister’s arrest would be shared with the public soon.
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