Court upholds Akbar verdict, calls mount for him to quit

Court upholds Akbar verdict, calls mount for him to quit

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The High Court in Jakarta upheld the district court's three-
year jail sentence on Speaker of the House of Representatives
Akbar Tandjung for the misappropriation of Rp 40 billion in Bulog
funds, prompting legislators and political analysts to renew
their calls for him to resign the speakership on moral and
ethical grounds.

A panel of judges presided over by Ridwan Nasution rejected
Akbar's appeal and endorsed the district court's judgment, but
allowed him to remain free pending an appeal to the Supreme
Court.

The judges said that Akbar, who was minister/state secretary
at the time of the wrongdoing, should have realized that in his
capacity as a public servant he should have set up a team to
monitor the usage of the state funds to avoid any irregularities.

Unlike Akbar, his codefendants Winfried Simatupang and Dadang
Sukandar had their sentences increased by 18 months. Both had
originally been sentenced to 18-months imprisonment by the
district court for embezzling the funds from the National
Logistics Agency (Bulog), funds that were intended to provide
food parcels for the needy under the social safety net program in
1999.

Analysts say that the High Court's decision represents a legal
endorsement of Akbar's guilt and, therefore, he should now start
serving his sentence, no matter what the Supreme Court's decision
will eventually be. They also argue that Akbar's guilt should
compel him on moral grounds to resign from his post in the
legislature.

Deputy House Speaker A.M. Fatwa from the Reform faction called
on Akbar to serve his jail sentence and resign from office to
show his respect for the law and "political custom."

"For the sake of morality and political ethics, he (Akbar)
should serve his jail sentence and step down. But, it all depends
on his sensitivities," Fatwa told The Jakarta Post after
receiving a petition from legislators for an inquiry into the
sale of state telecommunications firm PT Indosat to Singapore
Technologies Telemedia Pte. Ltd. (STT) at his office.

Dwi Ria Latifa of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
(PDI Perjuangan), who had previously campaigned for Akbar's
suspension, said on Friday that she and like-minded legislators
would intensify their campaign for Akbar's dismissal.

Dwi and many other legislators from the PDI Perjuangan and
National Awakening Party (PKB) factions, and Akbar's opponents in
the Golkar Party brought a no-confidence motion against Akbar in
House after he was sentenced on Sept. 4, 2002.

So far, the House has yet to decide whether to accept the
motion or not.

M.S. Kaban, a legislator from the Crescent Star Party (PBB),
called on Akbar to step down so as to set a good example of
compliance with the law and respect for morality and political
ethics.

"The demand for Akbar's resignation is increasing. How else
could it be?" Kaban asked.

Arbi Sanit, a political expert from the University of
Indonesia, and Bambang Widjojanto of the Center for Electoral
Reform (Cetro) concurred, saying that convicted officials,
including Akbar, should relinquish their posts.

Arbi suspected that Akbar's resistance to suspension from
office was motivated by a conspiracy between the PDI Perjuangan
and Golkar factions to help each other.

Meanwhile, the Golkar faction chairman, Marzuki Achmad,
defended Akbar's refusal to resign, saying that the High Court's
decision said nothing about Akbar's status as he was appealing to
the Supreme Court.

"We will defend Pak Akbar as House Speaker," said Marzuki.

Akbar, who regretted the High Court's decision, has ignored
the increasing calls for his suspension, saying the case occurred
when he was serving as minister/state secretary in the past and,
therefore, was not covered by the House's standing orders, which
require legislators found guilty of committing crimes to be
dismissed.

Akbar said he would file an appeal with the Supreme Court on
Monday, a process that could take up to one year. If his
conviction is still upheld, he is allowed by law to seek clemency
from the head of state.

Legislators and political analysts also criticized the High
Court for allowing Akbar to remain free, saying the verdict
should be executed for the sake of legal certainty. They also
regretted that law enforcers failed to investigate whether the
funds benefited the Golkar Party during the 1999 general
election.

Teten Masduki of Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW) appreciated
the Courts's decision saying that "it is not too bad to learn
that there are still a few out of thousands of judges who still
listen to the public."

He called on the House, however, to set up a disciplinary
committee to decide whether Akbar should be suspended while his
appeal was pending in the Supreme Court.

He also said ICW was disappointed with the court for not
sending Akbar to jail.