Graft suspect Akbar free to travel overseas: AGO

Graft suspect Akbar free to travel overseas: AGO

Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak and Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

House Speaker Akbar Tandjung is free to travel overseas after the
Attorney General's Office decided on Thursday not to ban him from
leaving the country despite his status as a suspect in a massive
corruption scandal.

Shortly thereafter, the House Consultative Body (Bamus) handed
Akbar another gift by unanimously agreeing to delay discussions
on the Golkar chairman's alleged corruption involvement until
March 7.

Head of the state prosecution team investigating the case,
Manaf Djubaedi, told reporters that there was no need to stop
Akbar from performing his second haj pilgrimage to Mecca as the
interrogation was due to take place before his departure on Feb.
14.

"There is no travel prohibition on Akbar," Manaf told
reporters on Thursday, adding that the questioning had been
scheduled for Feb. 4.

The prosecutors' decision not to impose a travel ban on Akbar
reinforces public opinion that the law enforcers are not serious
in taking legal action against Akbar who is accused of stealing
Rp 40 billion (about US$4 million) of State Logistics Agency
(Bulog) funds.

Four other suspects in the same case, including former Bulog
chief Rahardi Ramelan, have been banned from traveling overseas
in order to expedite the investigation into the scandal
totaling, Rp 54.6 billion.

Akbar's lawyers informed the state prosecutors on Monday of
their client's plan to visit the Muslim Holy Land, a move
apparently aimed at demanding that the investigators adjust the
questioning schedule.

Instead of opting for an early date of Feb. 11 as proposed in
the meeting, all factions in the House of Representatives (DPR)
unanimously agreed to delay discussing the case until March 7.

"We've agreed to set the date March 7 to hear comments from 10
factions on the proposal to form an inquiry committee," House
deputy speaker Muhaimin Iskandar told the press after presiding
over the closed-door meeting.

Legislators are scheduled to convene on Feb. 11 at the
soonest, but the factions opted for March 7 on the grounds that
there are too many issues to be discussed on Feb. 11.

The delay was seemingly a result of lobbying by Golkar in its
attempts to rescue its chairman Akbar Tandjung from a humiliating
investigation in the House.

Akbar has himself met President Megawati Soekarnoputri, also
the chairwoman of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle
(PDI Perjuangan), twice to negotiate the matter.

Akbar was declared a suspect by the Attorney General's Office
in the scandal on Jan. 7. Several witnesses have been questioned
over the high-profile scam in recent days.

Muhaimin of the National Awakening Party admitted that the
delay was aimed at giving legislators the opportunity to
scrutinize the legal process at the Attorney General's Office.

Asked if legislators considered discussions on an inquiry
committee less important, Muhaimin replied that it was only a
matter of schedule.

Muhaimin was, however, unable to reveal items in the schedule
to be discussed on Feb. 11.

Golkar's Hafiz Zawawi simply said that the delay would be used
by legislators to monitor the legal process of the financial
scandal.

"We didn't raise the suggestion. We've just agreed to the
proposal from other factions," he said after the meeting.