1. Bulog/Golkar 2x18
1. Bulog/Golkar 2x18
Legislators zero in
on Akbar's riddles
Well aware that the creation of a special committee to
investigate House Speaker Akbar Tandjung's alleged corruption is
no easy task, legislators are setting up a contingency plan.
They will exploit Akbar's documented inconsistent public
statements regarding his role in siphoning off Rp 40 billion in
National Logistics Agency (Bulog) funds to Golkar Party in 1999
when he was minister/state secretary.
His critics have charged that the inconsistencies show that
Akbar has been lying to the public, an unethical act, which by
itself, may cost him his position as House speaker.
Akbar, who is also the Golkar Party chairman, has been under
investigation by Attorney General's Office prosecutors for the
past several weeks. But Golkar politicians have been scheming to
buy time in an effort to thwart the establishment of the
committee by those demanding justice.
Spearheaded by legislators from the Indonesian Democratic
Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), the latest maneuver is
intended to take Akbar to the House's Honorary Council for lying
to the public.
Firman Jaya Daeli, a PDI Perjuangan legislator, said that
while the efforts to form a special committee to probe Akbar's
involvement in the Bulog scam would continue, he would also try
to take the case to the House Honorary Council.
"We (PDI Perjuangan legislators) are lobbying other factions
for support," Firman told The Jakarta Post.
The establishment of an Honorary Council is possible under
Article 59 of the newly enacted House internal regulations. The
maximum sanction is dismissal for any House member who breaches
the law.
J.E. Sahetapy, another PDI Perjuangan legislator, said that it
was needless to say that a senior state official was not suppose
to breath his/her oath in office.
"The House internal rule clearly stipulates the sanction. The
coming probe committee must recommend that the Honorary Council
discharge him (Akbar)," said Sahetapy, who is a legal expert.
PDI Perjuangan faction's plan received strong support from the
National Awakening Party (PKB) faction, which is also an adamant
supporter for the establishment of special investigation
committee.
"Although we still concentrate on the committee, we will
gladly support the New plan as well," said Ali Masykur Musa,
chairman of the PKB faction.
2. Arabs --- 2x21
Arab countries fear U.S.
about-face in Middle East
Arab countries fear that the United States is making an about-
face in the Middle East, letting Israel do what it will in a
return to the pre-Sept. 11 politics of disengagement in the
region, analysts said on Wednesday.
Between the "concept" of a Palestinian state expressed on Oct.
2 by U.S. President George W. Bush, and the tacit acceptance
Tuesday by his Secretary of State Colin Powell of the deadly
Israeli raids on the Palestinian territories, the Arabs perceive
a U.S. turn-about, commentators explained.
"Prime Minister Sharon ... is responding in a way that he
believes appropriate to defend his people and defend his
country," Powell said on Tuesday in regard to the Israeli
strikes.
The bombardments by combat helicopters and warplanes, the
largest since the creation of the Palestinian Authority in 1994,
were in retaliations for suicide attacks at the weekend by the
Palestinian movement Hamas which left two dozen Israelis dead.
He added that Palestinian president Yasser Arafat "needs to do
a lot more than we've seen so far," to prevent suicide attacks on
Israel.
For Egyptian columnist Salama Ahmed Salama, of the
governmental newspaper Al Ahram, "the Americans are showing their
true face" in regard to events in the Middle East.
3. Tommy ---- 1x30
Court violated all the rules in acquitting Tommy
A team examining October's controversial verdict issued by the
Supreme Court exonerating Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra from all
charges has concludes that the Court violated the Criminal Code
Procedures as well as its own rules and procedures.
In a statement made available to The Jakarta Post, the team
said on Wednesday that "the Criminal Code Procedures stipulate
that an application for a review must be made by the defendant
himself or his heirs and successors, and not his lawyers as in
Tommy's case.
"The verdict has also failed to deal with the conflict between
legal certainty and the sense of justice, so that the application
for a review should have been rejected."
It was understood that the public saw the original sentence
meted out by the Court as justice being done. The review,
however, had offended against the public's sense of justice.
The statement was issued after the team met with Chief Justice
Bagir Manan at the later's office.
It said that "due to these violations, the Supreme Court must
impose stern sanctions by dismissing the three review panel
justices as they have proven themselves incapable of carrying out
their duties."
The team was referring to deputy chief justice M. Taufiq and
justices Soeharto and German Hoediarto.
The team was set up by legal experts and a number of NGOs
following the issuance of the controversial verdict.
Tommy, a flamboyant businessman and playboy who is also the
son of former President Soeharto, was captured last week after a
year-long flight from justice.
He was originally found guilty of involvement in the Goro-
Bulog land scam and was sentenced in September 1999 to 18-months
imprisonment by the Supreme Court. The sentence was imposed after
the Supreme Court reversed Tommy's acquittal by the South Jakarta
District Court.