Mandiri directors may be named suspects

Rendi A. Witular, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

In a further development in the massive Bank Mandiri lending scandal, the government-sponsored corruption team may name several of the bank's incumbent board of directors as suspects in the case.

Coordinator of the anticorruption team, Hendarman Supandji, said it was possible that the directors would be named suspects since they have had a long career in the bank and might have known of or been involved in the scam.

"There is a possibility that several of the incumbent directors may be named suspects, but it will depend on the progress of our investigation," he said after meeting President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono on Monday.

Hendarman said the current suspects -- Bank Mandiri's former president director E.C.W. Neloe and vice president director I Wayan Pugeg who have been under detention since May 17 -- had not named other directors that may have been involved amid the prosecution's efforts to uncover other suspects.

Neloe was replaced by Agus Martowardojo, who was appointed by the government as the controller of Bank Mandiri, a day earlier.

But Agus appointment is somewhat controversial as he was among the bank's former executives who had been questioned by prosecutors over the massive lending scam involving more than Rp 12 trillion (US$1.26 billion).

The prosecutors questioned Agus over his role in extending problematic loans to companies when he was Bank Mandiri's managing director for risk management and credit restructuring between 1999 and 2000.

Another Bank Mandiri director who was questioned was Omar Sjawaldy Anwar, who currently deals with consumer banking businesses.

Hendarman said the prosecutors would extend the detention period for Neloe and Pugeg by another 20 days.