Akbar set free, can go abroad
Akbar set free, can go abroad
Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak and Tiarma Siboro, The Jakarta Post,
Jakarta
It's probably a mere coincidence that the Central Jakarta
District Court freed big-time corruption suspect House of
Representatives Speaker Akbar Tandjung from detention on his
wife's 42nd birthday on Friday.
Court spokesman Judge Andi Samsan Nganro said the release
followed a request from Akbar's wife Krisnina Maharani, who gave
a guarantee that her husband would not flee or miss any of the
hearings.
"The Central Jakarta District Court decided to release Akbar
from detention considering that his wife guaranteed that he would
not flee," said Judge Andi, also a member of the panel of judges
trying Akbar.
"From now on, Akbar is free to go wherever he wants, including
going abroad, as long as he is able to appear before the court
for his trial," Andi said.
Akbar, along with Dadang Sukandar and Winfried Simatupang, has
been charged with misusing Rp 40 billion (around US$4 million) in
funds belonging to the State Logistics Agency (Bulog), an offense
that could earn them a maximum jail sentence of 20 years.
Friday was indeed a special day for Akbar and his wife, who
celebrated her birthday in Akbar's cell in the morning.
"I thank God...I never expected that Pak Akbar could be
released on the same day as my birthday," she said.
However, yesterday was not such a lucky day for Dadang and
Winfried who remained in detention.
The three -- Dadang, Winfried and Akbar -- entered the cells
on the same day, March 7; their cells located near one another.
When asked why Dadang and Winfried remained in detention while
Akbar was freed, Judge Andi said: "It was because both Dadang and
Winfried did not file such of request on their release to the
court.
"Oh, no..no..I mean it was because both Dadang and Winfried
filed the request after Akbar did," Andi said correcting himself.
But Dadang and Winfried are not alone in detention. Another
suspect in the Bulog scandal, former Bulog chief and trade
minister Rahardi Ramelan, also remains in his cell.
The South Jakarta District Court, that tries Rahardi, decided
on Tuesday to extend Rahardi's detention for another 60 days.
The court's spokesman Judge Ida Bagus Putu Madeg said on
Friday that the decision was taken based on the fact that Rahardi
still had to attend further hearings and testify in the case.
The release of Akbar, also chairman of the second largest
political party, Golkar, irked corruption campaigner Teten
Masduki of Indonesian Corruption Watch.
"When prosecutors decided to put Akbar in detention last
month, I thought the legal enforcers had won the people's trust.
"However, this decision to release him, I'm afraid, will cause
the people to lose their already shaky faith in the legal
system," Teten told The Jakarta Post.
Teten suspected that Akbar's release would only pave the way
for him to wrangle political deals with government officials over
his and other corruption cases.
Akbar signed a document on his release at 5:20 p.m. at the
Attorney General's Office, where he has spent the past 30 days,
witnessed by Salman Maryadi, head of the Central Jakarta
Prosecutors' Office.
Akbar, who was still clad in the white koko (traditional long-
sleeved shirt) and peci (black national cap) he wore during
Friday prayers, went straight to his home on Jl. Widya Chandra,
South Jakarta, which was already full of relatives, friends and
supporters.
"I'm grateful for the judges' decision ... I'll get back to my
routine," Akbar told reporters.
Attorney General's Office spokesman Barman Zahir explained
that Akbar may celebrate his release, but warned that if he
spoiled it and hindered the legal process, his office would again
ask the court to send Akbar back to detention.
"Should he complicate the trial process, we will immediately
ask the court to put him back in detention," Barman remarked.