Haryanto flooded with phone calls

Haryanto flooded with phone calls

JAKARTA (JP): The telephone rang almost non-stop yesterday morning at the office of Minister of Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto, following the announcement a day earlier that President Soeharto has cleared him of allegations of misdeeds.

"I've been getting calls from friends congratulating me," Haryanto told Antara.

"This has been a hard trial for me psychologically," said the minister who has been in the news these past three weeks because of allegations of embezzlement and mismanagement.

Haryanto said he has received calls from civilian and military officials, entrepreneurs and legislators.

Following an investigation ordered by President Soeharto, Minister/State Secretary Moerdiono announced on Tuesday that Haryanto was guilty of some "administrative mistakes" but that he had reimbursed state funds which were used to pay for the foreign travels of his family.

Soeharto declared the case closed, Moerdiono said.

Many observers have said the case was by no means closed, with some calling for the matter to be cleared in the court, given the strong media publicity this affair has generated.

The latest to echo such view yesterday was the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI).

In a statement, YLBHI questioned how the investigation found irregularities, including the way Haryanto's office awarded government contracts, yet reached a conclusion that cleared the minister of the accusations.

The foundation said the 1945 Constitution clearly states that every person should be treated equally before the law.

It noted that Tuesday's announcement by Moerdiono had hardly "rehabilitated" Haryanto's name, who had been the victim of a "trial by public opinion".

YLBHI called for both political and legal measures to settle the affair as a way of establishing "government accountability."

The Haryanto affair, it added, also serves as another reminder of the need for greater transparency in the way the government is being managed. (emb)