JAKARTA Sept 13 (Reuters) - President Joko Widodo toldIndonesians on Friday he would not compromise in the fightagainst graft, amid concerns over the officer picked to headthe anti-corruption agency and proposed changes curbing itsright to wiretap suspects without a warrant.Having successfully prosecuted hundreds of politicians andofficials since its formation in 2002, the CorruptionEradication Commission, known by its Indonesian initials, KPK,has become one of the country's most respected agencies.
There have been repeated efforts by politicians and policeto undermine the KPK and last week parliament passed a motionto debate amendments to the 2002 law that created thecommission.
The proposed changes include placing the agency under theoversight of an external board which would have the right todecide whether the KPK could run wiretaps.
President Widodo, who chose not to veto the motion, defendedsome of the proposed changes on Friday, saying an external boardwas necessary for "good governance", though he said he wouldpick the members and they would include researchers andanti-corruption activists, not politicians or bureaucrats.
"I will not compromise in fighting corruption. I want theKPK to have a central role," he told a news conference, addingpermission for wiretapping should be decided by the supervisoryboard.
The mooted reforms have alarmed anti-corruption activistsand over a hundred people rallied in support of the KPK onThursday.
"The weakening of the KPK is a betrayal of Indonesian'sreform mandate and the nation's dream to have a healthydemocracy," said Adnan Topan Husodo of Indonesia CorruptionWatch.
Many of the KPK's graft cases have targeted members ofIndonesia's parliament, with the house's former speaker amongscores convicted for corruption.
Some MPs have previously accused KPK investigators of actinglike "anarchists", but when the body has faced pressure in thepast there has been an upsurge of public support to defend it.
The KPK has also at times clashed with senior policeofficers. In 2015, the agency named Widodo's sole candidate tobecome police chief as a graft suspect. His appointment waslater overturned amid a public outcry, though the legal caseagainst him was later dropped.
KPK's departing chief Agus Rahardjo told reporters onThursday the agency opposed the revisions and believed theywould impede the ability to fight corruption.
"We hope our concerns will be heard by decision-makers..theanti-corruption movement needs to be strengthened, notweakened," Rahardjo was cited as saying by news portalDetik.com.
Analysts have also raised concerns about the makeup of theKPK's new board of commissioners. Rahardjo, whose term isending, will be replaced by police inspector general, FirliBahuri, who has been accused of ethical violations during aprevious attachment at the KPK.
Bahuri told reporters on Friday the alleged violations werean internal matter for the KPK.
KPK deputy chairman, Saut Situmorang, who had held a pressconference on Wednesday over Bahuri's alleged ethics violations,resigned shortly after the appointment was confirmed byparliament.(Reporting by Fanny Potkin and Agustinus Beo Da Costa. Editingby Ed Davies & Simon Cameron-Moore)