Accounting firm questions Ghalib for alleged graft

JAKARTA (JP): An accounting firm on Wednesday questioned Andi M. Ghalib, who stepped aside from the Attorney General's Office last month pending a graft investigation, Antara reported.

The news agency said a team from the Prasetyo Utomo accounting firm questioned Ghalib for more than an hour at the office of Coordinating Minister for Development Supervision and State Administrative Reforms Hartarto Sastrosunarto.

Since the fall of former president Soeharto in May last year, Hartarto has led the national drive against corruption, nepotism and cronyism.

Ghalib, who was accompanied by his lawyers Hotma Sitompul and Ruhut Sitompul on Wednesday, managed to escape a horde of journalists through a back door after the questioning.

On June 14, President B.J. Habibie suspended Ghalib, a lieutenant general, after the independent Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW) said Ghalib had some Rp 13 billion (US$1.9 million) in a bank and that some of the money was suspected to have been bribes from businessmen under investigation for banking law violations.

The government also said Ghalib's bank account would be audited by an independent accounting firm.

The Association of Indonesian Accountants (IAI) said last month that the audit of Ghalib's bank account was only "a waste of time, money and energy" as Ghalib had not been named a suspect. The association also said access to Ghalib's bank accounts would only be given by the central bank governor if police named Ghalib a suspect in their investigations.

Separately, a team of lawyers from ICW revealed on Wednesday correspondence between the Military Police and the National Police indicated Ghalib was being treated as a suspect though there was no official statement yet.

Antara quoted one of the lawyers, Ida Warauw, as saying the Military Police had written to the National Police requesting the latter to ask the central bank for permission for the Military Police to access Ghalib's bank accounts.

Warauw said the Military Police previously asked Bank Indonesia for access, but was denied because the banking law specifies only the prosecution office, police and the court have the right to do so.

"Access will be given only if the Military Police was accompanied by the National Police," Warauw said after the lawyers' visit to the National Police Headquarters.

The headquarters, she revealed, previously asked for such access but was also denied because Ghalib was not yet named a suspect then.

In addition, the National Police has yet to respond to the Military Police's request because the letter failed to specify the full name and rank of Ghalib.

ICW chief lawyer Iskandar Sonhadji suggested that a joint team of the National Police and Military Police be sent to access Ghalib's account. (byg/swe)