Tomy says 'Tempo' article false and unfounded<\/p>\n
M. Taufiqurrahman, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
After a week's delay, businessman Tomy Winata finally appeared at
\nthe Central Jakarta District Court on Monday to testify in the
\nlegal battle between himself and Tempo weekly, denying all
\naccusations made against him as published in the magazine's
\narticles.<\/p>\n
Tomy, who failed to appear last week \"due to illness\", told
\nthe courtroom that he did not submit a proposal to the Jakarta
\nadministration for the reconstruction of Tanah Abang textile
\nmarket in Central Jakarta after it was razed by fire on Feb. 19,
\nas published in the weekly's article entitled 'Ada Tomy di
\nTenabang?'.<\/p>\n
He said that the article -- which called Tomy a \"big
\nscavenger\" -- insinuated that he deliberately set the market on
\nfire to reap the subsequent contract. The article, according to
\nhim, had also damaged his reputation as a businessman.<\/p>\n
\"The article has tarnished my image as a credible businessman.
\nMany of my colleagues questioned whether what was written in the
\narticle was true,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Tomy also said that he was not contacted by the weekly's
\nreporters to confirm the existence of such a proposal.<\/p>\n
\"I was never interviewed by a Tempo journalist and the voice
\non the tape is not mine,\" he said, after the court played a tape
\nof a telephone interview.<\/p>\n
The testimony contradicts the statement made by Tomy in the
\nvery same article, which said that he in fact returned the call
\nof one of the weekly's reporters.<\/p>\n
In the article, published in the March 3 edition, Tomy
\nanswered the reporter's question in a raised voice: \"You are not
\nthe first reporter to ask me the question, in fact you are the
\nsixth person. I never spoke to anyone from the city
\nadministration about the renovation proposal and if your
\naccusation is true I will give you half of my property.\"<\/p>\n
In the same article, it was also mentioned that Tomy had made
\na proposal, valued at Rp 53 billion (US$6.24 million) to renovate
\nthe market. He was said to have made the bid long before fire
\ndestroyed a total of 2,420 of the market's 7,594 shops.<\/p>\n
The article and a number of subsequent articles have been the
\nsource of a prolonged legal battle between Tempo chief editor
\nBambang Harymurti, journalists Ahmad Taufik and T. Iskandar Ali
\nand the businessman.<\/p>\n
They are charged with violating Article 14(1) of the Criminal
\nCode for deliberately disseminating rumors and publishing a
\ndefective report that could provoke public disorder. It carries a
\nmaximum sentence of 10 years in prison.<\/p>\n
Monday's court hearing was also marked by a tense exchange
\nbetween Tomy and the Tempo defense team, who criticized him for
\ngiving a lengthy and pointless explanation.<\/p>\n
Dozens of Tanah Abang vendors held a demonstration in front of
\nthe court, demanding that the panel of judges issue a just
\nverdict. They said that they had suffered from the fire and
\nrefused to be further victimized by the disputing parties.<\/p>\n
The market's reconstruction will start in mid December and the
\nRp 600 billion investment will be provided by business partners
\nof city market operator PD Pasar Jaya, to be announced early next
\nmonth.<\/p>\n
Presiding judge Andriani Nurdin adjourned the trial to Nov. 3,
\nto hear testimonies from two other witnesses Anton Anggoman and
\nAndi Betung.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/tomy-says-tempo-article-false-and-unfounded-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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