House members want councillors released

SURABAYA: A number of House of Representatives' members from Jakarta have demanded the release of two senior councillors, currently being detained in Surabaya on graft charges, saying they would take responsibility should the councillors abscond.

Surabaya legislative council speaker M. Basuki and his deputy, Ali Burhan, were arrested last week for their alleged role in a Rp 2.7 billion corruption case involving the local legislature.

Soetardjo Soejogoeritno and Haryanto Taslam, both senior House members from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), and Muhaimin Iskandar of the National Awakening Party (PKB), visited the detained councillors in Medaeng prison in Surabaya on Tuesday.

The three legislators gave their assurances to local prosecutors that the PDI Perjuangan's Basuki and PKB's Burhan would not flee if they were released.

Haryanto criticized the arrest of the two councillors, saying there was no "significant" cause to hold them during the investigation. --JP