House to grill Rini Soewandi over Sukhoi deal on July 29

House to grill Rini Soewandi over Sukhoi deal on July 29

Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The House of Representatives is scheduled to summon Minister of
Industry and Trade Rini M.S. Soewandi on July 29 over the
controversial purchase of four Sukhoi jet fighters and two
assault helicopters from Russia.

The minister will have no option but to answer the summons,
otherwise the legislative body would order the police to detain
her for 15 days.

"She is expected to show up on July 29," said Effendi Choirie,
deputy chairman of House's committee investigating the Sukhoi
deal here on Thursday.

The newly endorsed bill on the composition of legislative
bodies allows the House to ask the police or the attorney general
to detain, for 15 days, anyone refusing to show up for
questioning.

Choirie added that the House committee has checked the
minister's schedule with the secretary-general of the ministry of
industry and trade and found that the minister was not busy on
that day.

He added there should be no reason for the minister to reject
the summons.

Rini failed to show up at the House on July 8 as she was
attending a meeting for the development of Indonesia's eastern
region in Poso, Central Sulawesi.

Choirie, also a legislator of the National Awakening Party
(PKB) faction, said he hoped the inquiry into the US$192.6
million deal could finish before the Annual Session of the
People's Consultative Assembly scheduled for August 1 through
Aug. 10.

Meanwhile, committee member Rizal Djalil of the Reform Faction
revealed that there were certain groups who were trying to foil
the inquiry.

"But, it will not halt the investigation," Rizal said without
elaborating.

The House set up a committee to probe the purchase of the
Russian fighter jets and military helicopters due to alleged
irregularities in the deal which violated banking regulations and
defense law.

The defense ministry which was reportedly not involved in the
deal should take a leading role in the deal as required by the
law.

President Megawati Soekarnoputri has revealed that Rini along
with the chief of the National Logistics Agency (Bulog) was
behind the deal.

Defense minister Matori Abdul Djalil said his ministry was not
involved in the deal while Indonesian Military Commander Gen.
Endriartono Sutarto has confirmed that the deal was made with the
consent of the ministry.

Choirie also said that the plan to summon Rini was aimed at
demonstrating to the public that his committee was working
despite the recess.