Prasetio Utomo told of risks in Ghalib audit

JAKARTA (JP): The Prasetio Utomo & Arthur Andersen accountancy firm has been urged by other public accountants to turn down the government assignment to audit former Attorney General Andi M. Ghalib's bank account because of stringent restrictions imposed by the job.

Henry B.L. Toruan, an accountancy lecturer at the University of Indonesia, said on Monday that if Prasetio Utomo implemented the assignment under such strict limitations, the company would not be able to maintain its integrity, independence and professional competence as required by the Accountant Code of Ethics.

The government assigned Prasetio Utomo to audit Ghalib's bank account to verify whether the transfers made to it could be classified as corruption or bribes.

The audit was ordered following the allegation by the Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW) last month that Attorney General Ghalib abused his position to enrich himself through corruptive practices.

ICW submitted copies of 16 bank accounts said to be under the name of Ghalib and his wife to substantiate the allegation.

President B.J. Habibie last month suspended Ghalib from his position pending the completion of investigations into the allegation.

However, the audit assignment given to Prasetio Utomo was limited only to Ghalib's account at the Jakarta Melawai branch of Lippo Bank which was claimed to be a joint account with the Indonesian Wrestling Association which he chaired.

ICW saw the restriction as quite strange because the allegation of corruption against Ghalib was related to 16 accounts under the name of Ghalib and his wife involving transactions of more than Rp 10 billion.

"If the assignment is meant only to verify the authenticity of photocopies of an account, then that is not a job for a public accountant," Toruan told a seminar on the role of accountants in discovering crimes.

He said Prasetio Utomo would not be able to provide a reliable professional judgment if it was not allowed to verify and audit other bank documents and transactions related to the account.

Rudy M. Harahap of ICW, who also spoke at the same seminar, agreed that if Prasetio Utomo agreed to audit only one of Ghalib's bank accounts, the information to be gathered would be biased and the judgment would be legally flawed.

"The Accountant Code of Ethics stipulates that if a public accountant is restricted in the scope of its audit assignment it shall turn down or quit such an assignment," Harahap said.

Harahap criticized the Honorary Council of the Indonesian Accountants Association for remaining silent and not raising the issue about the distorted audit assignment to Prasetio Utomo. (vin)