Corruption eradication key to Indonesia’s economic growth: Mahfud

Jakarta, The Gulf Observer: Vice presidential candidate number 3 Mahfud MD on Friday emphasized that the key to Indonesia’s economic growth is the eradication of corruption.

“The key is how we eradicate corruption,” he said during the first vice presidential debate at the Jakarta Convention Center (JCC) here.

According to him, throughout the reformation era, economic growth never reached seven percent due to the many corruption-related problems in the country.

Mahfud said that inefficiency in economic growth sectors, namely the consumption sector, government spending, export-import, and investment, also hindered the achievement of the economic growth target.

He added that the problem of corruption makes business owners doubtful of investing in Indonesia.

Entrepreneurs need a strict law enforcer who can boost corruption eradication, he said.

“I talked to economists and business people, (and asked) ‘Are you really afraid of me if (I) become the vice president? (They said,) ‘No, sir, we need a law enforcer like you,'” he recalled.

He said that the business players expressed the fear of being blackmailed and eventually getting caught because of having to pay bribes to run their businesses.

Therefore, Mahfud said that he and his running mate, presidential candidate Ganjar Pranowo, have called for fighting corruption so that economic growth of up to seven percent can be achieved.

“We have to fight corruption, like what youngsters say, ‘Hi corruptors, let me run you over,'” he quipped.

He said that, based on Transparency International’s study, corruption occurs in legislative, executive, and judicial institutions on a large scale.

In addition, corruption exists in three “natural dimensions” of Indonesia, which are land, sea, and air, he added.

“There is corruption on land or in mining, in marine sectors, and aviation (business),” he explained.