Sapuan's hearing delayed by two weeks<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Lawyers for former State Logistics Agency
\n(Bulog) deputy chief, Sapuan, requested a hearing of their
\nclient's corruption case on Tuesday be adjourned due to the
\nabsence of presiding judge Lalu Mariyun and asked the South
\nJakarta District Court to postpone the hearing until Jan. 23.<\/p>\n
The hearing was scheduled to begin at 10 a.m., but at 11:30
\na.m., judge Lalu who is also chief of the district court, had yet
\nto arrive as he was attending a Halal bi Halal (post-Idul Fitri)
\ngathering at the Supreme Court in Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Judge Rosmandani Achmad, a member of the panel of judges that
\nis trying the case, took the initiative to open the hearing at
\n11:30 a.m. and requested the prosecutors, the lawyers, the
\ndefendant and reporters to wait patiently for Lalu Mariyun who
\ninformed he would be present at the hearing at 1:30 p.m.<\/p>\n
But, chief lawyer Muhammad Assegaf said it was too late to
\nbegin.<\/p>\n
\"We want the questioning of the defendant to be completed in
\none session,\" he told reporters at the courtroom.<\/p>\n
Prosecutor Nulis Sembiring said he agreed with the two-week
\ndelay.<\/p>\n
\"I can understand the delay because of the busy schedules of
\nthe judges and the lawyers,\" he told The Jakarta Post while
\nleaving the courtroom.<\/p>\n
Sapuan, the man at the center of the Rp 35 billion (US$3.6
\nmillion) Bulog scandal, is being charged under Article 374 of the
\nCriminal Code on embezzlement, which carries a maximum sentence
\nof five years in jail.<\/p>\n
Sapuan has denied the charges, saying that he acted upon
\nPresident Abdurrahman Wahid's order to find funds for the
\ngovernment's humanitarian program in Aceh. The money subsequently
\nwent to Suwondo, Abdurrahman's masseur, who will be prosecuted in
\na separate trial, and to a number of other people associated with
\nthe President.<\/p>\n
The scandal has prompted the House of Representatives to form
\na special committee (Pansus) to investigate the possibility that
\nmembers of the President's inner circle were involved.<\/p>\n
A member of the President's inner circle being heard at the
\nHouse on Tuesday was Semarang-based businesswoman Siti Farikha.<\/p>\n
Forgiveness<\/p>\n
A few minutes prior the opening of the hearing, Sapuan who has
\nalways been reluctant to meet journalists, surprisingly, revealed
\nthat he had forgiven President Abdurrahman for all his mistakes.<\/p>\n
\"To forgive is the most difficult thing for Indonesians to do,
\nbut I forgive Gus Dur,\" he said, adding that forgiving others was
\na lesson his late grandmother had taught him.<\/p>\n
\"Not only Gus Dur, but I also forgive all of you,\" he said to
\nthe journalists surrounding him, but did not elaborate.<\/p>\n
Sapuan said he expected his trial would be finished early this
\nyear and explained that the scandal that has dragged him to court
\nwas no problem.<\/p>\n
\"During the fasting month of Ramadhan, I prepared my personal
\npleas, besides the lawyers' pleas, against the prosecutors'
\ncharges,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Sapuan said he would likely publish his personal pleas in a
\nbook following a suggestion by a fellow prisoner.<\/p>\n
Sapuan said if the South Jakarta District Court acquitted him
\nof all charges, he would teach economy at a Jakarta-based private
\nuniversity.<\/p>\n
\"It will be impossible for me to return to Bulog because I'm
\nretired already,\" the 57-year-old Sapuan said.<\/p>\n
\"However, if the court punishes me with a jail sentence, I'll
\nfight through a higher court. (01)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/sapuans-hearing-delayed-by-two-weeks-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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