Akbar defiant as his graft trial kicks off

Yogita Tahilramani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Corruption suspect and Golkar Party chief Abkar Tandjung was defiant on Monday, as he declared all corruption charges leveled against him to be untrue on the first day of his trial at the Central Jakarta District Court.

Wearing a white business shirt and tie, Akbar, who is also the speaker of the House of Representatives (DPR) in which Golkar is the second largest faction, appeared relaxed throughout the hearing as state prosecutors took turns reading the charges against him.

"The defendant Akbar Tandjung...collectively with the other defendants...has committed an act to make profit for himself, others or an institution and abused his authority," state prosecutor Fachmi told the court.

When state prosecutors asked Akbar if he understood the charges, Akbar defiantly said: "I understand the charges... none of them are true," prompting prosecutors to reprimand him speaking out of order.

Akbar, 56, and his two codefendants -- Dadang Sukandar, 53, and Winfried Simatupang, 63 -- went on trial over what has become known as "Buloggate 2" -- the suspected embezzlement of Rp 40 billion (US$4 million) in funds from the State Logistics Agency (Bulog).

Akbar and his two codefendants are charged with violating corruption laws that carry a maximum punishment of 20 years in jail.

During B.J. Habibie's presidency in 1999 the money was allegedly allocated for a program to feed the poor. Akbar who was Cabinet minister at the time was supposedly in charge of the program but the cash never reached its target. There are suspicions the money was actually used to bankroll the 1999 election campaign for Golkar, which was then the ruling party.

Fachmi told the court that Habibie ordered Akbar to use the funds to pay for poverty relief.

"But the facts show that the purchase and distribution of basic foodstuffs for poor people never took place," said Fachmi.

The indictment does not mention what the state funds were used for, but anticorruption activists and political opponents have long alleged that some or all of the money was used to finance Golkar's campaign.

Akbar arrived at the Central Jakarta District Court escorted by dozens of security men. Akbar appeared slightly preoccupied as dozens of journalists were there to greet him while he walked to the courtroom, before waving to the crowd.

Prosecutors took turns reading a lengthy list of charges in the packed courtroom, which was guarded by over 150 policemen, as pro- and anti-Akbar protesters staged small demonstrations outside.

Akbar's lawyers demanded that all charges be dismissed.

"The primary charge leveled against the first defendant (Akbar) should be declared null and void because the charges were compiled and detailed unclearly, carelessly or in a vague manner," Amir Syamsuddin told the five judges.

The hearing was adjourned until April 1.

After the court hearing, Amir added that the dossiers were not only obscure in content, they were also confusing, as among other matters, prosecutors had clearly put in more work in describing former president B.J. Habibie's role during the event of the embezzlement, than Akbar's role in the graft scandal.

Prosecutors apparently had good leads to help them trace the funds as they had in their possession key evidence, in the form of 15 checks worth Rp 40 billion.

In a bizarre twist, they also recently received a reimbursement of the money by Winfried Simatupang following his claims that he had been hiding the money under his mattress at his residence for the past three years.