The wRap Indonesia: Jan. 30, 2015

JAKARTA, Indonesia – President Joko Widodo’s latest moves as he maneuvers through his first major political crisis lead our wrap of stories from Indonesia today. 

1. Alternative police chief names discussed with Jokowi

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has yet to decide on whether he would continue with Comr. Gen. Budi Gunawan’s appointment as National Police chief, but on Thursday night, January 29, he apparently discussed alternative names with the National Police Commission (Kompolnas), according to Cabinet Secretary Andi Widjajanto. The meeting comes a day after Jokowi was advised to drop Budi by the independent team he created to advise him on the conflict between the police and the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK). On Thursday, Jokowi also met with former presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto in what analysts are saying indicates the president could be looking for political support elsewhere. Jokowi’s own party, PDI-P, is seen to be pushing for the controversial appointment of Budi, who has been named a corruption suspect by the KPK.

2. Budi Gunawan ignores KPK summons

Meanwhile, Budi on Friday ignored summons from the KPK, with his lawyer reasoning that the police general had already filed a motion contesting the KPK’s decision to name him a corruption suspect. A hearing will be held on Budi’s motion on Monday. The KPK has been having trouble getting witnesses in their case against Budi to show up, with only 1 showing up among the 13 mostly police generals the KPK has sent summons to so far. But KPK said they can turn to the Indonesian military for help if a second round of summons still fails.

3. Fishermen find 6 bodies believed to be AirAsia victims in Makassar Strait

As of Friday morning, January 30, a total of 6 bodies believed to be victims of the AirAsia QZ8501 crash had been found by fishermen in the Makassar Strait over the past week, according to Tempo.co. Some of the bodies have been identified, but others are in severe states of decomposition and need to be taken to Surabaya for identification. Along with the bodies, fishermen have found debris from the plane in the the waters off of Majene and Pinrang in West Sulawesi, which is about 1,000 kilometers away from the site of the crash near Central Kalimantan.

4. Tough, hefty fines await errant Jakarta civil servants

Jakarta’s tough governor is imposing tough penalties to discipline erring civil servants. “If they’re late even for just one minute, we will cut their salary by IDR500,000 ($40),” Lasro Marbun, the head of the Jakarta Inspectorate Deparment, said on Thursday. Civil servants will also be encouraged to make sure their colleagues are not doing anything funny. If a civil servant is proven to have engaged in corruption or extortion, his or her entire unit will be sanctioned with a 10% salary deduction for two months. The regulations are still being finalized and are expected to be completed in February, according to Beritajakarta.com.

5. Uber launches cheaper service in Jakarta

Six months after launching its high-end UberBLACK service in Jakarta, and despite threats of being banned by the city government, Uber on Friday launched a new cheaper service called uberX. The new service will chauffeur people around in an Avanza, Xenia, or Ertiga, at rates 35% lower than the premium UberBLACK. With uberX, fares start at IDR3,000 and charge IDR2,000 for every kilometer, making it cheaper that regular cabs in the capital. – Rappler.com