Court acquits ex-banker Onko in BLBI graft case

Court acquits ex-banker Onko in BLBI graft case

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Inconsistencies in the course of justice in the Bank Indonesia
Liquidity Support (BLBI) case was evident Friday, as the Central
Jakarta District Court acquitted the former deputy commissioner
of the now-defunct Bank Umum Nasional (BUN) from all charges,
while the former president director received 10 years in jail for
misusing Rp 6.7 trillion (US$745 million) of the fund.

The court ruled that defendant Kaharudin Ongko, 65, was not
guilty of graft or of amassing wealth as charged earlier by
prosecutors.

"As a commissioner, the defendant was not responsible for any
of the activities taken by the bank's director," presiding judge
Amiruddin told the hearing, and ordered the rehabilitation of
Ongko's reputation.

Defendant Leonard Tanubrata was not as fortunate as Ongko, as
the judges declared him guilty of misusing the BLBI funds during
the November 1997 to April 1999 period when he served as the
bank's president director.

Prosecutor Y.N. Eddy said he would file an appeal against the
court's decision to acquit Ongko.

He had earlier demanded a sentence of 16 years for Ongko and
14 years for Tanubrata, and for the defendants to repay the state
the Rp 6.7 trillion.

Although he looked a little shocked, Tanubrata, who remained
free pending the final legal settlement, must be relieved as the
judges did not order him to repay the state losses.

"The shareholders of BUN have settled their debts with the
government, so the defendant does not have to repay the state
losses," Judge Amiruddin said.

One of BUN's shareholders, Muhammad "Bob" Hassan, signed the
Master of Settlement and Acquisition Agreement (MSAA) on Nov. 6,
1997, while Ongko, who is also a shareholder, signed the Master
of Refinancing and Notes Issuance Agreements (MRNIA) on Dec. 18,
1997, with the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA), as
was revealed by the court.

Bob, a timber tycoon, is now behind bars at Nusakambangan
Island off the coast of Central Java after he was sentenced to
six years in jail for manipulating US$75 million from a forestry
fund.

The judges had also considered that the government may give
the BUN shareholders "release and discharge" statuses for signing
the MSAA and MRNIA.

The government, on recommendations from IBRA and the Financial
Sector Policy Committee (FSPC), which groups senior economic
ministers, has agreed to exempt former bank owners deemed
cooperative in settling their debts to the state from criminal
charges, by offering them the release and discharge status.

Many have raised their objections to the policy, saying that
it would dash public hopes for justice.

According to the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK), many bank owners
had violated a total of Rp 144.5 trillion (US$16.2 billion) in
BLBI funds provided by the government.

Courts here have delivered inconsistent sentences for the
defendants of BLBI cases. Armed with a variety of reasons, judges
had acquitted several defendants from all charges, while in other
cases, they presented light sentences of only several months to a
few years in jail.

This does not mean that the court has never handed a harsh
sentence. The Central Jakarta Court sentenced former banker
Hendra Rahardja of the now-defunct Bank BHS to life in prison and
two other executives of the same bank to 20 years in jail.
Unfortunately, however, they were all tried in absentia.

With such contradictory verdicts, it is understandable if the
lengthy and controversial trials bear no significant consequence
for the poor state budget, as the court did not order most
defendants to repay the abused funds to the state.

Out of 17 cases, the courts have only ordered three defendants
to pay a maximum fine of Rp 500 million each, instead of ordering
them to repay their debts worth trillions of rupiah.

David Nusa Wijaya of the now-defunct Bank Servitia was ordered
to repay Rp 1.27 trillion, but his present whereabouts is unknown
as he fled when his case was being heard by the Jakarta High
Court.

The courts here have never ordered the immediate incarceration
of convicted criminals directly after the verdicts have been read
and sentences handed down.