Ginandjar to be questioned Thursday

JAKARTA: Former mines and energy minister Ginadjar Kartasasmita will be questioned on Thursday as a suspect in an alleged graft case involving the Technical Assistance Contract (TAC) between sate oil company Pertamina and PT Ustraindo Petro Gas.

"We sent him (Ginandjar) the summons on Thursday," spokesman for the Attorney General's Office Barman Zahir said on Friday.

He said the questioning was originally scheduled for Monday or Tuesday.

It was the first questioning for Ginandjar, who is a deputy People's Consultative Assembly speaker, since the South Jakarta District Court ordered his release from detention on the grounds of unlawful arrest in April last year. The Supreme Court has issued an opinion that the arrest was indeed lawful.

The questioning will be conducted by a joint team of military and state prosecutors as Ginandjar was an active duty military officer when the alleged crime took place between 1992 and 1995. The graft caused US$24.8 million in state losses.

Two of the suspects, former Pertamina president Faisal Abda'oe and Ginandjar's successor Ida Bagus Sudjana have died. The other suspect Praptono Tjiptohupojo is currently being treated for heart disease. -- Antara