Ginandjar must appear for questioning: AG
JAKARTA (JP): Attorney General Marzuki Darusman insisted on Friday that former top official Ginandjar Kartasasmita, a visiting scholar at Harvard University in the U.S., should come to his office to be questioned over several graft cases.
Marzuki said he received on Thursday a letter sent by Ginandjar's lawyer, Muchyar Yara, stating that his client could not leave his work at the university but was willing to give written testimonies.
"We're looking for a solution over this matter. He's allowed to give written testimonies but we still want his presence here as he once promised," he told journalists at his office.
Marzuki said that before Ginandjar left the country last year, the former coordinating minister for the economy, finance and industry, who is also the deputy speaker of the People's Consultative Assembly, committed himself to return home at anytime to fulfill the state prosecutors' summonses.
"We understand that Ginandjar has been kept busy with his activities but his latest words are not the same as those he uttered earlier. Hopefully Ginandjar can be present for the investigation," he added.
Ginandjar, who held several ministerial posts during the administration of former president Soeharto, served as the mines and energy minister between 1988-1993. The era spanning Soeharto's term of office witnessed a number of alleged corruption cases now being handled by prosecutors.
Among the cases were ones involving Soeharto's children, Sigit Hardjojudanto and Siti Hardijanti Hastuti "Tutut" Rukmana. The latter is a suspect in the marking up of a government oil contract.
Ginandjar himself was believed to have been involved in some fraudulent contracts for the development of the Balongan refinery in Indramayu, West Java; the selection of Paiton Energy for the power purchase contract in East Java; and a contract agreement with U.S.-based oil company Arco.
In July last year, Ginandjar had taken the initiative to visit the Attorney General's Office to counter the allegations.
He left for the U.S. in August and is scheduled to finish the program next June.
The controversy over Ginandjar's role erupted after the resignation of Soeharto in the middle of 1998.
Soeharto
In a separate development, state prosecutors and management of state-run Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital agreed to start observing medical records of the ailing Soeharto, a defendant in a US$571 million graft case, on Monday.
Antasari Azhar, head of the South Jakarta Prosecutors' Office, said on Friday that the data examination is aimed at assessing Soeharto's up-to-date medical condition.
"It's up to the team of doctors, to be officially announced on Monday, to decide whether it is necessary to examine Soeharto after observing the data," he told journalists after a meeting with the doctors at the Jakarta Prosecutors' Office.
Head of the team of doctors, Ichramsjah A. Rachman, said his team, which has yet to be fully formed, will be a "complete team" and includes, among others, a neurologist, a surgeon, a heart specialist, and a laboratory analyst.
Muchtar Arifin, chief prosecutor of the case, said that the office will coordinate with Soeharto's family regarding medical treatment.
In an effort to improve the performance of the prosecutors' intelligence work, Marzuki had decided to replace deputy attorney Lt. Gen. (ret) Yusuf Kartanegara with military prosecutor Maj. Gen. (ret) Chalid Karim Leo. The ceremony will be held on Monday.
Marzuki said that although Yusuf was once an adjutant to Soeharto, the latter's work wouldn't be a hindrance to his office investigation on the cases involving Soeharto's children and family.
Asked to comment on the statement made by presidential spokesman Wimar Witoelar calling for his resignation if he failed to probe several big corruption cases within a month, Marzuki shrugged off the possibility. He believed the statement did not reflect the views of President Abdurrahman Wahid. (bby)