Advisor denies charges against Soeharto

Advisor denies charges against Soeharto

JAKARTA (JP): Yohanes Yacob, an advisor hired by Soeharto to
defend his interests, said allegations that the former president
and his family had illegally amassed trillions of rupiah were
untrue.

Yohanes, who heads the so-called Cendana Consulting Team, said
Soeharto only had limited savings in local banks and no overseas
holdings.

He said that after being accepted as a consultant he
immediately asked Soeharto whether reports of his enormous wealth
were true.

"He told me that the money comes from his salary as a retired
officer in the Armed Forces and president for 32 years," Yohanes
said during an interview with TVRI.

Yohanes said the money was savings Soeharto had intended to
use as an "old-age retirement fund". He did not say exactly how
much or in which banks the money was deposited.

Yohanes, however, said Soeharto was willing to surrender his
deposits for people's welfare if the public considered them to be
excessive.

Yohanes also said that Soeharto was delaying his intention to
explain publicly about his alleged accumulation of wealth as he
wanted to respect the Attorney General's Office investigation
into alleged corruption under his leadership.

"Soeharto is actually longing to explain the matter but he
decided to give the Attorney General's Office a chance to
complete its investigation first," Yohanes claimed, adding that
the 77-year-old former president remained steadfast amid the
enormous public onslaught regarding his wealth.

Yohanes revealed that he had been working at Soeharto's
residence on Jl. Cendana for the few past days, hence the name
Cendana Consulting Team.

His name shot to fame over the weekend when it was revealed
that he was leading a team of consultants advising Soeharto on
his interests.

He did not reveal the makeup of his team, saying only that he
had divided the team into several divisions, including legal,
economic and political.

Yohanes is an almost unknown in prominent legal circles. Many
continue to raise eyebrows that Soeharto would choose someone so
obscure without even a law degree to lead his team of advisors
which may soon face a barrage of legal issues concerning
Soeharto's wealth.

Former attorney general Soedjono C. Atmonegoro revealed last
week that Yohanes had presented letters on his power of attorney
to represent Soeharto.

Yohanes is a graduate of Pacific Western University in Los
Angeles, United States, with a doctorate in political science.

He is currently chairman of an organization called
Yayasan/Lembaga Perlindungan Budaya Hukum Nasional "Keadilan
Sosial Indonesia" (Foundation for the Protection of National
Culture and Law "Indonesian Social Justice") which has its office
in Tebet, South Jakarta. (byg)