Akbar has yet to be declared a suspect: AG

Akbar has yet to be declared a suspect: AG

Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Prosecutors probing the 1999 graft scandal allegedly involving
the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Akbar Tandjung, say
they have yet to declare the former state secretary a suspect.

"We still have to examine (former president B.J.) Habibie's
testimony, as well as other witnesses, as they gave such
contradictory testimonies," prosecutor Manaf Djubaedi told
reporters on Friday.

"Pak Habibie said Pak Akbar had never made any report progress
over the project to him, while the later said he had made a
verbal report to Habibie," Manaf said.

The case revolves around an instruction from Habibie to Akbar
prior to the June 1999 elections, to dispose of Rp 40 billion out
of Rp 54.6 billion for the poor using State Logistic Agency
(Bulog) funds.

The two possible suspects have exchanged barbs over evidence
this week.

Manaf, however, refused to say whether he would summon Akbar,
who is also the Golkar party chairman, for a third time in light
of Habibie's testimony, saying that the prosecutors would need to
"further analyze" the evidence.

The main suspect in the case was Rahardi Ramelan who was the
head of Bulog at that time. Akbar's possible involvement in the
scandal surfaced in October and he had made a number of
contradictory statements about his involvement.

Since then there have been mounting calls for him to resign as
House speaker.

Manif, when asked whether the evidence might be adequate since
both Habibie and Akbar had never referred to any 'written report'
about the case, said: "Let us make further analysis prior to
concluding our investigation."

Manaf, along with prosecutor Ahmad Santoso, spent two days
questioning Habibie in Germany from Dec. 11 to 12. Habibie said
he could not come home because he was tending his sick wife.

A human rights activist has criticized the Attorney General's
Office (AGO) for sending prosecutors to Germany.

"The one who is sick is his wife. Can't somebody tend her
while Habibie comes to Indonesia to explain about the Bulog
case?" Bambang Widjojanto, a former chairman of the Legal Aid
Foundation, was quoted by Kompas as saying.

He said Habibie's wife's illness was a mere excuse and that
the AGO had applied the law unequally.

"Is it because Habibie is a former president that the Office
opted to go to Germany to question him?" he asked.

Bambang said he wondered what would happen if anyone else
asked to be treated the same way.

"Should the Office reject such a request that would be
discrimination before the law," he said.

Bambang was also skeptical about the validity of the
questioning.

"What if the testimony given by Habibie under oath was denied
by Akbar?" he asked. "That would jeopardize the whole legal
process to seek the truth."

The case has implicated a number of top officials. During the
questioning in Hamburg, Habibie reportedly admitted to issuing a
recommendation to Akbar to use Rp 40 billion out of Rp 54.6
billion for a food-for-the-poor program. The remaining Rp 10
billion was used by former armed forces chief General Wiranto to
set up a civilian militia in East Timor. The remaining Rp 4.6
billion was used for the cancellation of a land-swap deal between
Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra's PT Goro Batara Sakti and Bulog.

Like Haryono Suyono, the former coordinating minister for
social welfare and poverty, Habibie also said that he had never
heard of the Raudlatul Jannah Islamic Foundation, as well as its
chairman Dadang Sukandar.

Akbar earlier claimed that Dadang had been the contractor who
helped him distribute the food for the poor.

Habibie said he had never received a report about the project
until he stepped down in August 1999, a statement supported by
former minister of justice Muladi who replaced Akbar as state
secretary in May 1999.

Earlier, Attorney General M.A. Rachman said that the Office's
random check in several regions showed that such a project as
claimed by Akbar had never taken place.