“Storm” of Government Officials’ Behaviors
State civil apparatus has been swept up in a storm as netizens peer into the unusual wealth of the Finance Ministry’s civil servants and their families.
Former echelon III official of the Directorate General of Taxes, Ministry of Finance, Rafael Alun Trisambodo (center) walks to the car after being questioned at the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) Building, Jakarta, Wednesday (1/3/2023).
This storm happened by accident. The arrogant behavior of a tax official’s son had stirred the long-existing resentment of some people. Mario’s father, Rafael Alun Trisambodo, who has accumulated an unusual amount of wealth, has been under the scrutiny of netizens. The more netizens probed, the more they found ways wealth can be concealed. Rafael was then removed from his position.
Because of Rafael, other civil servants of the Finance Ministry were audited as well. From what was revealed on the surface, some had concealed their wealth using classic methods, such as writing it off in the name of others or by simply not reporting it. These conditions are indeed concerning and fuel resentment among the public, which has sounded the alarm.