Military Chief's Watch, Genuine or Not, Raises All Kinds of Questions
Gen. Moeldoko, commander of the Indonesian Armed Forces (TNI). (Rumgapres Photo)
Jakarta. Indonesia's military chief collects counterfeit watches, with no qualms about it, and he'll go to extreme lengths to prove it.
That was the conclusion, at least, from a bizarre stunt on Wednesday when Gen. Moeldoko threw his watch to the ground in a bid to convince reporters that it wasn't a $100,000 collector's edition timepiece as reported by a Singapore website. Moeldoko's reported wealth is around Rp 32 billion, or $2.75 million.
"Just watch me, so you know I'm not lying," the four-star general told reporters at the Borobudur Hotel in Jakarta, as quoted by Detik.com, before throwing the watch to the ground.
He then let one of the reporters check the watch, which was reportedly still working fine and hadn't picked up any scratches.
Moeldoko has been at the center of a flurry of speculation about the watch, which the Singapore site themillenary.com identified from a photograph as being a Richard Mille RM 011 Felipe Massa Flyback Chronograph Black Kite, with a reported price tag of above $100,000. Only 45 of the timepieces were produced for the Asia region.
However, Moeldoko insisted that the watch did not cost that much, saying instead that it was a counterfeit item made in China, and that he had a whole collection of bootleg watches, including a fake Rolex. He said the RM 011 he had was a good imitation that cost around Rp 5 million.
"Other people buy expensive watches, but I get them cheap," he said.
A counterfeit watch of the same kind at Pasar Senen in Central Jakarta costs around Rp 7 million, Detik.com reported a vendor as saying.
Asked for his take on buying goods made in violation of intellectual property rights, Moeldoko said: "That's not my business."
Indonesia consistently ranks as one of the worst violators of intellectual property rights in the world, with lack of law enforcement against piracy and counterfeiting seen as a major factor.
Another Singapore site, mothership.sg, dug up more photos of Moeldoko wearing other high-end watches, including an IWC Pilot's Watch Chronograph Top Gun Miramar, with a list price of $12,700; an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore Jarno Trulli Chronograph ($38,300); and possibly an Audemars Piguet Millenary Minute Repeater — costing a staggering $476,600.
Indonesian legal expert Frans H Winarta said that by knowingly buying and wearing counterfeit items, Moeldoko could have violated the law.
"For a state official like Moeldoko, it is really important for him to abide with the law," he said.
"If he knows that the watch is a counterfeit, he should have reported it to the police. By not having reported it, he might be helping crimes against intellectual property rights. And by admitting this to the public, it could cause counterfeiting to grow more rampant in the country."
While not believing Moeldoko's watches are fake, Tama S. Langkun, a researcher with Indonesia Corruption Watch, said the public must question such a lavish lifestyle for a military officer.
"A government official with a large number of expensive watches should raise suspicion," he said.
"And more important, has Moeldoko reported his watches in his wealth reports to the state?
"Many people do not include accessories because they are generally not as expensive as houses or cars, but if the accessories like Moeldoko's watches are worth hundreds of thousand of dollars, then they should be reported, whether they are a gift or a purchase," he said.
Usman-Harun row remains
Hikmahanto Juwana, an international relations expert at the University of Indonesia, said that having seen how the Singaporean media highlighted Moeldoko with his glamorous watches, it could be the sign that the Singaporeans were still upset about Indonesia's decision to name a warship the "KRI Usman-Harun," after two soldiers considered by Singapore as terrorists but heroes by Indonesia.
"If Singapore intends to attack Indonesia's military through its media, it is clearly wrong-targeted. If the Singaporean media wants to attack the military forces of Indonesia, why attack the general but not the minister of defense?" he said.
"It is questionable. What is the motivation of the Singaporean government [ sic ] behind all of this?"
Hikmahanto said that the Indonesian government and media should be careful in considering the reports of a neighboring country's media.
"We have to fully comprehend this matter. This is no good in refining the relationship between Indonesia and Singapore. In addition, it could spark other problems in Indonesia, especially at the governmental level," Hikmahanto said.
"If the 'fight' moves to using a country's media to discredit Indonesian officials, that is not a wise decision by Singapore," he added.
"In the end, whatever the intention of Singaporean media is, it is not good for the Indonesian-Singaporean military relationship."
Glamorous lifestyle
Wearing glamorous accessories is almost seen as compulsory by government officials. A recent wedding party with iPods as souvenirs for hundreds of guests was held by the secretary of the Supreme Court; a Rolex wristwatch worth tens of millions of rupiah worn by the president of the Islamic Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), Anis Matta; or the luxurious cars flaunted by Democratic Party legislator Ruhut Sitompul are just some examples of how public officials live lavishly.
A report from Indonesian online portal Tribunnews stated that most members of the House of Representatives tended to buy expensive watches worth up to hundreds of millions of rupiah.
Time Place Store in Plaza Senayan is one of stores frequently visited by House members.
"Most of the customers that come to our store are from the House," Erick, the boutique supervisor, said as quoted by Tribunnews.
Erick added that most officials who shopped at the store preferred to pay by cash.
"Usually, if a member of the House of Representatives comes to shop, they prefer to pay with cash. Almost none of them do transactions through bank transfers or credit card," he said.
Yunarto Wijaya, from the consultancy Charta Politika, said there was nothing new or objectionable about public officials flaunting their wealth in obscene ways, unless their performance in office was particularly poor.
"There is nothing wrong with officials wearing such sophisticated accessories. Having a humble lifestyle is another choice that anyone can choose.
"An official leading an affluent lifestyle doesn't guarantee whether they are doing a good job or not," he said.
"However, I understand that the extravagant lifestyle of most Indonesian officials attracts people's attention because too often their work performance is deemed to be unsatisfactory by many," Yunarto said.
"As a government official earning public money, this high-class lifestyle is not in line with the large number of people in the country who are living on or below the poverty line," he added.
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