No tribunal for Agus and Saurip: Gen. Endriartono
No tribunal for Agus and Saurip: Gen. Endriartono
JAKARTA (JP): Army Chief of Staff Gen. Endriartono Sutarto
announced on Monday the Army would not call a Military Tribunal
(DKM) to hear charges against Lt. Gen. Agus Wirahadikusumah and
Maj. Gen. Saurip Kadi.
"So far, we (the Army) have not found any concrete evidence of
violations (committed by the two) that would make us take legal
action," Endriartono said following a hearing with House of
Representatives Commission I for security, defense and foreign
affairs.
A Military Tribunal is a nonstructural body that hears cases
against military officers, giving its recommendation as to what,
if any, sanctions should be imposed, Endriartono said.
However, he did not say if the Army would clear Agus and
Saurip of all charges or continue investigating the pair.
Agus, a former Army Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad)
chief, and Saurip, a former assistant to the Army chief for
territorial affairs, have been accused of "indiscipline".
Agus has been accused of being absent without leave, and
Saurip of publishing a book about the military's activities
without the Army's permission. Agus also has been accused of
disclosing an alleged Rp 189 billion (US$21.2 million) corruption
scandal at a Kostrad foundation before the Army's investigation
into the matter was complete.
The charges against Agus became a hot issue last year when
President Abdurrahman Wahid appeared poised to appoint him as
Army chief of staff to replace Endriartono's predecessor, Gen.
Tyasno Sudarto.
Based on unconfirmed media reports, some 46 Army generals
signed a petition threatening to resign en masse if Agus was
appointed Army chief. The petition also reportedly recommended
that Army Headquarters press disciplinary charges against Agus
and Saurip.
In October last year, the two were questioned by Endriartono,
who, at the time, was the Army deputy chief of staff.
It was in the middle of an investigation into allegations of
corruption in Kostrad by his predecessors that Agus lost his
post.
Agus also was questioned by the Army leadership about his
decision to send a company of Kostrad troops to Bengkulu without
first coordinating with Indonesian Military Headquarters when the
province was struck by an earthquake last June.
Both Agus and Saurip have called the allegations slanderous.
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