'No limit' set for Soeharto's medical costs
JAKARTA (JP): Prosecutor Muchtar Arifin said on Friday that the state is not limiting the funds earmarked for former president Soeharto's medical treatment, while the state-appointed team of physicians has calculated that it would cost some Rp 100 million (US$10,000) per month.
"There is yet to be a limit set for the expenses...the important thing is (how) to make Soeharto fit enough to stand trial," he told journalists at the Attorney General's Office compound.
"But it should be carried out efficiently and effectively because we will be responsible for all the expenses, which will also be audited by the Supreme Audit Agency," he quickly added.
He said, however, that the government might not actually spend Rp 100 million per month, as some particular medical procedures would no longer be used in the future.
Muchtar explained that the expense of Rp 100 million is for medical equipment, medicine and other medical measures taken by the 23 members of the Cipto Mangunkusumo Hospital (RSCM) team.
"This does not include the doctors' fees," he said.
The team of doctors are giving neurological treatment for the ailing 79-year-old former ruler, who suffered three strokes after resigning as President in the middle of 1998.
They will start psychiatric treatment next month.
Last year, a district court dropped the case against Soeharto, a suspect in a US$571 million graft case, since he failed to attend trial due to ill-health.
Earlier last month, the Supreme Court ordered the prosecutors to put Soeharto's medical treatment under the state's supervision and expenses.
Muchtar said that the prosecutors and the RSCM doctors would hold a meeting on Monday to further discuss the expenses and on March 29 to discuss Soeharto's latest health condition during a month of treatment.
On Friday, state prosecutors questioned businessman Praptono H. Upojo, president of oil company PT Ustraindo Petro Gas (PT UPG), as a suspect in the markup of government projects with the state oil and gas company Pertamina.
Praptono told journalists after being grilled for more than five hours that instead of having caused losses to the state, his company had given benefit to Pertamina because it was PT UPG which bore all the production costs.
State prosecutors have also named former ministers of mines and energy Ginandjar Kartasasmita and his successor Ida Bagus Sudjana and former Pertamina president Faisal Abda'oe as suspects in the case for awarding the project to PT UPG to provide allegedly unnecessary technical assistance to the still- productive oil fields.
Sudjana testified that the project had been halted due to PT UPG's bad performance which had inflicted losses to the state.
Praptono, who admitted being close to the former Soeharto first family, said that his company had been promised $230 million foreign loans from a business partner but the investor later broke the promise.
"Our failure to carry out the projects was mainly caused by our partner's failure to fulfill all the financial commitments as promised," he said.
Also on Friday, the prosecutors examined Rossano Barrack, president of PT Triharsa Bimanusa Tunggal, a company belonging to Soeharto's eldest daughter Siti Hardiyanti "Tutut" Rukmana, for his part in an alleged mark-up of the construction of oil pipelines in Java. (bby)