'Elite conspire to preserve corruption'<\/p>\n
A'an Suryana and Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Political observers lashed out on Saturday at what they saw as a
\nconspiracy to save House Speaker Akbar Tandjung, a suspect in a
\nRp 40 billion scandal involving the State Logistics Agency
\n(Bulog), from facing the music, saying the move would severely
\nerode public confidence and support in any future anticorruption
\ninitiatives.<\/p>\n
\"The move to drop the House investigation against Akbar proves
\nthat our legislators focus only on their own immediate and short-
\nterm interests,\" senior researcher J. Kristiadi, of the Centre
\nfor Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), told The Jakarta
\nPost on Saturday.<\/p>\n
\"If politicians fail to put this case on the right track,
\npublic trust in the government and politicians will vanish, and
\nthis will be bad for the country's efforts to eradicate
\ncorruption,\" he added.<\/p>\n
Kristiadi was asked to comment on statements made by major
\nparties in the House of Representatives on Friday that there was
\nno urgent need to establish a House investigation committee to
\nlook into alleged corruption by Akbar, who is also the chairman
\nof Golkar, the second biggest faction, with 120 members in the
\nHouse.<\/p>\n
The statements come just three days before the House is
\nscheduled to hold a plenary session on Monday to decide whether
\nor not it will set up an investigation team to question Akbar.<\/p>\n
However, virtually all the major parties in the House said on
\nFriday that Akbar's case should be resolved through legal
\nchannels only, and that a House inquiry was no longer needed,
\nafter Akbar had been charged as a suspect by the Attorney
\nGeneral's Office.<\/p>\n
Their statements constitute an about-face as most factions,
\nincluding the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI
\nPerjuangan), which is chaired by President Megawati
\nSoekarnoputri, had earlier agreed to set up an inquiry team to
\ninvestigate Akbar.<\/p>\n
PDI Perjuangan Secretary General Sutjipto said during his
\nvisit to Cairo that his party would thwart any attempt to set up
\na committee of inquiry.<\/p>\n
PDI Perjuangan's apparent about face was still in question as
\nSutjipto's remark was denied by deputy secretary of the PDI
\nPerjuangan faction Firman Jaya Daeli who said that Sutjipto's
\nstatement did not represent the stance of his party.<\/p>\n
\"The statement should not be seen as our official position.
\nThe different opinions only reflect the maturity of our party,\"
\nFirman told the Post here on Sunday.<\/p>\n
Firman, one of the 50 legislators who support a committee of
\ninquiry, said that it is still possible for PDI Perjuangan to
\nchange its stance.<\/p>\n
He said the official position of his faction would depend on
\ntwo aspects. The quality of the ongoing legal proceedings against
\nAkbar by the Attorney General's Office, and the explanation to be
\npresented by the legislators on Monday.<\/p>\n
\"We will continue to endorse the proposal to set up an inquiry
\nteam if the explanation is reasonable and relevant,\" Firman
\nadded.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Arbi Sanit, a lecturer at the State University of
\nIndonesia, said that if the about face was true, it was the
\nresult of \"pork barrel politics\".<\/p>\n
\"By dropping the plan for the House to investigate Akbar,
\nmembers of the elite are not only saving Akbar but also
\nthemselves as they have also received money from Bulog,\" Arbi
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
A Golkar executive had said earlier that only two parties had
\nnot received Bulog money, namely the left-wing People's
\nDemocratic Party (PRD) and the Muslim-based Justice Party (PK).<\/p>\n
Arbi said Akbar could have blackmailed Megawati during their
\nrecent meeting by threatening to disclose that her Indonesian
\nDemocratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) and other big
\nparties had also received money from Bulog if the PDI Perjuangan
\npressed ahead with the establishment of a House inquiry team.<\/p>\n
PDI Perjuangan is the biggest faction in the House with 153
\nmembers.<\/p>\n
Arbi said that the public had hoped the elite would become
\nrole models and be front-runners in the country's drive to combat
\ncorruption.<\/p>\n
\"However, this expectation has faded away since the elite are
\nturning around to protect a person who was strongly suspected of
\nbeing involved in corruption,\" he said.<\/p>\n
According to Kristiadi, the establishment of a committee of
\ninquiry was important to show the public that the political elite
\ncould be held accountable before the people for all of their
\nactions.<\/p>\n
Kristiadi said that the setting up of a House inquiry team
\ncould benefit Golkar.<\/p>\n
\"By establishing an inquiry team, Akbar could prove that he is
\ninnocent. But, he and his party have rejected the move, raising
\npublic suspicions that there is some fire behind the smoke,\" he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
\"A political leader must be held accountable for all of his
\nactions as he is elected by the public,\" he said, adding that
\naccountability was essential to democracy.<\/p>\n
Arbi said that Akbar must not only be subjected to a legal
\nprocess, but also a political process.<\/p>\n
\"That would distinguish him from the man in the street,\" he
\nadded.<\/p>",
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