Graft rumors swirl after reshuffle

JAKARTA (JP): Legislators said after a closed-door consultative meeting that President Abdurrahman Wahid told them his decision to replace two economics ministers was due to their alleged involvement in corruption, collusion and nepotism.

Legislator Meliono Suwondo of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) said Abdurrahman revealed that the Cabinet reshuffle was due to corruption.

Meanwhile, a chairman of a Muslim party faction at the House of Representatives, speaking on condition of anonymity, also said that suspicions of impropriety was the reason given by the President for axing Laksamana Sukardi and Yusuf Kalla as state minister of investment and state enterprises development and minister of trade and industry.

"It's not because they could not work together, but the President said that it was because of graft," the senior legislator said.

Golkar Party legislator Ekky Syachrudin further confirmed that the President had said corruption was the reason for the replacement, and not his earlier public statement that a lack of teamwork was the reason.

"The two ministers should be asked for confirmation since it could defame them," he said.

The legislators said Laksamana was suspect due to his decision of replacing several directors in state enterprises overseen by his ministry, while concern over Yusuf was related to the minister's brothers who joined tenders in the ministry.

House Speaker Akbar Tandjung was more reserved about the accounts of the meeting between the President and leaders of the House.

Akbar acknowledged that the four-hour meeting, usually open to the media, was closed because the President wanted to reveal the reasons behind the replacement of the two ministers.

However, he would not reveal the allegations against the two ministers, saying only that he and the Golkar Party were "not satisfied" with the explanation.

"We still cannot fully accept the reasons before we get clarification from the concerned (former) ministers," Akbar, who is also the Golkar Party chairman, said, adding that the party would consider withdrawing its representatives in the Cabinet if the accusations were proved untrue.

Meliono also said PDI Perjuangan was "not satisfied with the explanation".

"Actually, we wanted to ask more questions on these accusations, but the meeting was already ending," he said.

Apart from discussing the Cabinet reshuffle, which took up the majority of time in the consultative meeting, the President also reiterated his desire to revoke the People's Consultative Assembly Decree No. 25/1966, which bans communism.

"Abdurrahman agreed that the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) could be banned, but he disagreed with a ban on communism and Marxism," Meliono said.

Denial

The President confirmed weeks of speculation when he revamped half his economics team by appointing on Wednesday Lt. Gen. (ret) Luhut Panjaitan as the minister of industry and trade, and Rozy Munir as state minister for investment and state enterprise development.

Initially, Abdurrahman said the reason was the axed ministers' inability to work together with Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Finance and Industry Kwik Kian Gie and Minister of Finance Bambang Sudibyo.

Abdurrahman said there was disunity and that the two axed ministers failed to implement economic reforms mandated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) resulting in a freeze of the US$400 million installment of its $5 billion rescue package for Indonesia.

While Laksamana could not be contacted for a response to the allegations, Yusuf Kalla went on the offensive later on Thursday by meeting with Golkar Party colleagues to refute the various allegations of graft, among which was the charge concerning the state-owned electrical company PT PLN tender for the Paiton project in East Java.

Yusuf maintained that despite the fact the tender was done fairly, certain parties had maliciously slandered him.

"There was a certain party who whispered to Abdurrahman," he said without elaborating.

"This case was examined by (Attorney General) Marzuki Darusman and the Inspectorate General of the Ministry of Industry and Trade. Everyone said it was clean without any intervention ... And it should be given to (the winners of the tender) the Bukaka- Megaeltra and Wijaya Karya consortium," Yusuf said.

The reverberations concerning accusations of graft were also felt outside the House building.

A Cabinet minister, who asked not to be named when contacted by The Jakarta Post, said among the reasons for the dismissals was the President's exasperation at the ministers' half-hearted policies due to their self-interest.

When asked to be more specific, the minister said Laksamana had gathered an investors forum with direct access to him but without the knowledge of the President.

"Another example was during the PT Indosat shareholders meeting which invited the director of Indosat but elected a commissioner as president.

"That was not consulted with Abdurrahman or other ministers."

Turning his attention to Yusuf Kalla, the minister without elaboration merely said: "He used to be against regulating the sugar trade, but all of a sudden he is strongly campaigning for it." (byg/jun/dja)