'Akbar tried to make me lie'

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Former State Logistics Agency (Bulog) chief Rahardi Ramelan told the South Jakarta District Court on Tuesday that House of Representatives (DPR) Speaker Akbar Tanjung and his former lawyer had persuaded him to lie to investigators in a bid to cover Akbar's involvement in the Bulog scandal.

Rahardi, who is being tried for his alleged role in the misappropriation of Rp 62.9 billion of Bulog funds, said Akbar and his then lawyer Hotma Sitompoel persuaded him to hide the truth during a meeting held at the Grand Mahakam hotel in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, on Oct. 10, 2001.

Rahardi made the statement in response to the testimony made by Akbar, who took the witness stand in his trial.

It was Rahardi's lawyer Trimoelja D. Soerjadi, who first revealed in court the plot to cover Akbar's involvement in the scandal.

"Have you ever attended a meeting at the Grand Mahakam hotel on Oct. 10, 2001?" Trimoelja asked.

Clad in dark suit, Akbar, who did not seem to expect the question, was quiet for a while and took a deep breath before answering the question.

"Yes, but I don't really remember it," said Akbar.

Akbar, who is being tried separately on the same graft charges, later admitted that he and several people, including his then lawyer Hotma Sitompul, met Rahardi and his then lawyers OC Kaligis and Yan Djuanda Saputra in the hotel. The meeting was to discuss a response to Rahardi's expected questioning by the Attorney General's Office probing the scandal.

However, when Trimoelja was about to ask Akbar another question, presiding Judge Lalu Mariyun postponed the hearing for one and a half hours for a lunch break.

At the four previous hearings, he adjourned the hearing for only an hour for lunch.

Trimoelja told reporters that Akbar and Hotma had attempted to persuade Rahardi to lie to the investigators.

Hotma, Trimoelja said, concocted an elaborate scheme aimed at covering up Akbar's involvement in the scandal.

Rahardi, according to the scheme, gave the funds in question directly to the Raudlatul Jannah foundation for a charitable project, instead of giving it to Akbar.

The plot, too, required Rahardi to say that Bulog was responsible for the monitoring of the project, Trimoelja said.

After the break, Trimoelja continued his questions about the meeting between Akbar and Rahardi. But chief prosecutor Kemas Yahya Rahman interrupted the hearing.

"I think the questions are irrelevant with the indictment. Your Honor, please order the lawyer to stop his questions," he said.

But judge Lalu allowed Trimoelja to proceed with the questions.

Trimoelja asked Akbar whether Hotma had requested Rahardi to lie, but Akbar said that he did not remember the conversation in the meeting.

At Tuesday's hearing, Akbar, chairman of the Golkar party, was accompanied by lawyer Amir Syamsudin, wife Krisnina Maharani, as well as several Golkar members, including Mahadi Sinambela and Bomer Pasaribu.

Akbar dismissed Hotma, as well as lawyers Ruhut Sitompul and Tommy Sihotang, two months ago. Rahardi also fired Kaligis and Yan Djuanda last month.

Lalu was the judge who acquitted former president Soeharto youngest son Hutomo "Tommy" Mandala Putra and businessman Ricardo Gelael in a corruption case involving Bulog, that inflicted Rp 95.4 billion in losses to the state.

The decision was later overturned by a panel of Supreme Court justices, including Syafiuddin Kartasasmita, who was shot death, allegedly on Tommy's orders last July.

Rahardi is being tried for his alleged part in the misappropriation of Rp 62.9 billion in state funds between 1998 and 1999.

If convicted, Rahardi could face up to 20 years in jail.

According to the indictment, Rahardi gave Rp 40 billion of Bulog's non-budgetary funds to Akbar, who was then the state secretary. Akbar was assigned by former president B.J. Habibie to manage the project.

Akbar then assigned the Raudlatul Jannah Foundation to handle the project. The chairman of the foundation, Dadang Sukandar, ordered contractor Winfried Simatupang to manage the tasks.

Winfried repaid Rp 42.5 billion to the Attorney General Office in February, saying he had kept the money in his house. Many alleged that the fund was used to finance the 1999 Golkar campaign for the general elections.

During Tuesday's questioning, Akbar denied that the fund was channeled to Golkar or Golkar members.