Lawyer Sony Sonjaya: Elza Syarief Was Dismissed, Not Resigned
Lawyer Krisna Murti, representing former Deputy Head of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN) Sony Sonjaya, stated that Elza Syarief did not resign from the legal team but was instead dismissed by the client’s family. The statement was made in response to Syarief’s claim that she had stepped down from representing Sonjaya in the corruption case concerning the management of the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) programme.
“It was not a resignation but a dismissal. I only found out from the family through my staff, who informed me that the family had revoked her mandate,” Krisna told reporters in Jakarta on Wednesday (17/6).
Krisna also asserted that his client has fully disclosed all names of individuals allegedly involved in the case, countering Syarief’s accusations of dishonesty. “As far as I know, Mr. Sony has revealed everything in the investigation report. I don’t understand where Bu Elza is going with this. To my knowledge, Mr. Sony has been completely transparent with investigators. There are no names being covered up, as I was also present during the legal assistance alongside Bu Elza,” he added.
Previously, advocate Elza Syarief claimed she had decided to withdraw from Sony Sonjaya’s legal team. She stated that as of Monday (15/6), she was no longer his lawyer, a decision she made after the Attorney General’s Office named Asep Yusuf Somantri, a trusted associate of Sony, as a suspect. Syarief said she felt deceived because the Attorney General’s Office alleged that Asep had regularly given money from the sale of Nutritional Fulfilment Service Unit (SPPG) points to her former client.
“Because Mr. Sony was not honest. Before taking an oath, he claimed to be clean, but information revealed he received money from Asep regularly. How can he apply for Justice Collaborator status? I feel some things were disclosed while others were protected,” she told reporters on Tuesday (16/6). She also expressed pessimism that Sony’s application for Justice Collaborator (JC) status would be granted by the Attorney General’s Office, citing investigators’ findings of money flows to Sony.