|
A
traffic police officer in Bali has lost his job after a video clip went
viral on YouTube last week showing him allegedly accepting a bribe. Far
worse than losing his job is that he has lost face after millions of
people, in Indonesia and around the world, saw him caught in the act.
Television stations played and replayed the video, generating even more negative
reaction.
Watching the
clip, I found it more hilarious than tragic. It looks more like a scene
from Just for Laugh Gags, a popular reality television program from
Canada that shows people caught by surprise on hidden cameras by
good-humored pranks.
The producer
of the video is a Dutchman who travels around the world to record
untoward behavior such as this to warn his fellow citizens. He has also
posted on YouTube a video of similar event at the Bali immigration office
and fraud at a Bali moneychanger. However, the video that has created the
greatest reaction is the video involving the police officer.
After
stopping the Dutchman, the officer cited him for two violations: not
wearing a helmet and failing to show a driver’s license. He quoted a Rp
1.25 million (US$130) fine, off the top of his head, to be payable at the
courthouse.
Alternatively,
the officer said, the Dutchman could pay Rp 200,000 to him on the spot
and all would be forgiven. Two hidden cameras recorded the conversation
and the transaction.
Encouraged by
the Dutchman, the officer then got chatty and said this was his third
catch of the day — the first one paid Rp 300,000 and the second Rp
100,000. The scene took on an unexpected comic element when the officer
invited the Dutchman to join him for a beer. He took Rp 100,000 from the
fine money to pay for the beer, and then quipped, “this is for my
government”, as he pocketed the remaining Rp 100,000. One could only
assume that he thinks he is the government.
You couldn’t
get a friendlier cop anywhere else in Indonesia. I have had my share of
stops by the police, and yes, I have paid the fines on the spot. But I
have never been asked to join the officer for a beer or coffee or nasi
goreng (fried rice). It’s unheard of.
If you’re looking
for a friendly face for the National Police, then this officer from Bali
is your man. He has shattered our long-held assumption that police
officers are underpaid. Rather than using the money to buy powdered milk
for a baby at home, he blew it on beer, even treating the foreign
tourist. This is the best of Balinese hospitality on display.
The officer
was not only friendly, but also offered the errant Dutch motorist a
practical solution. He spoke good and clear English and was far
friendlier than the immigration officer in the other YouTube video. He
didn’t deserve to be fired. There are many far worse officers, including
his seniors, who have brought greater shame to the country.
More
revealing, however, is the reaction of many Indonesians. Through social
media, they expressed shock and condemnation. I have one word to describe
them: hypocrites.
Where have
they been? This practice has been going on for decades. We have all
tolerated it and encouraged it. It is happening on our streets, almost
anywhere in Indonesia, all day and every day.
To condemn
the practice now, only because it is was shown on YouTube, is to pretend
that this was something new.
Faced with
similar circumstances, everyone, except a few puritans, would settle for
damai, which in this context is street parlance for peace. The
alternative would be to spend long hours sitting through a court hearing
before paying a heftier penalty. These traffic officers are offering us a
practical win-win solution. When we accept the easy option, which means
bribing the officer, it makes us accessory to a crime. But if we are
condemning this act now as a bribe, then we should be condemning
ourselves.
By now we are
beyond shock about what the National Police are capable of doing,
especially after the revelation of billion-rupiah scams, as in the
current investigation of a top officer, Insp. Gen. Djoko Susilo, by the
Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).
Thanks to
technological changes, the use of hidden cameras and the sharing of
videos through the Internet, some petty bribes can now also be exposed
too, whether it is among the traffic police or immigration officials.
However, it
is not just the officers who have to make changes if they don’t want to
get caught on camera. We the public, who have tolerated small-time
corruption all this time, must also be prepared for the changes to come.
Now, all our traffic officers will be careful of the possibility of a
hidden camera. Pretty soon, the option of settling traffic fines on the
spot will be gone. We will all have to make that trip to court.
Is that hard
to imagine?
Not really.
Just take a trip to Singapore or countries where you can’t bribe your way
out of petty crimes. It’s actually quite refreshing. Just be sure to
avoid violating the traffic laws, even the smallest ones.
Who knows, if
everyone tries their best to comply, driving through Jakarta’s traffic
may become that bit more bearable. ●
|
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar