President urged to suspend AG, big political oarties disagree

Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Calls for President Megawati Soekarnoputri to suspend Attorney General M.A. Rachman amid corruption allegations and the misreporting of his wealth, are mounting.

However, politicians from the major political parties say the claims are exaggerated.

Hendardi of the Indonesian Legal Aid Institute (PBHI) said on Sunday that Megawati must suspend Rachman over his failure to list an exclusive property in his wealth report.

Amid mounting calls for him to resign, Rachman gave no sign that he would step down. He told the Kompas daily newspaper on Saturday that he did not want to enter into a debate about his position.

He even said that he would be taking big cases to court in the near future.

"Instead of resigning, Rachman now tries to shift public attention to other cases by declaring that he will take a number of big cases to court," Hendardi said.

He maintained that Rachman should resign or the President should suspend him while his wealth was investigated.

If Rachman remained as the attorney general the public would have no confidence in the Attorney General's Office, Hendardi said.

If Megawati failed to remove Rachman, the public would doubt her resolve to eradicate corruption, he said.

Achmad Ali, a legal expert from Hasanuddin University, suggested that Rachman quit.

"If he quits, the President will no longer carry the burden of dismissing him," he told the Post.

Both Hendardi and Achmad urged the government to establish an independent team to investigate Rachman's alleged involvement in corruption.

The team should consist of lawyers with high integrity, academics and other independent parties, they said.

Rachman's wealth report to the Public Servant's Wealth Audit Commission (KPKPN) was found to contain discrepancies.

Questions raised included the attorney general's alleged ownership of a luxury house worth around Rp 5 billion (US$561,700) in the Graha Cinere housing complex in Depok, West Java.

The property was not listed in Rachman's wealth report submitted to the commission.

Public servants who intentionally conceal their wealth and their family's assets can be dismissed.

The case has reportedly created friction between senior prosecutors at the AGO, with some siding with Rachman, while others are calling for his head.

Office spokesman Barman Zahir and deputy attorney general for intelligence Basrief Arief, however, dismissed the rumors and said that all prosecutors stood behind Rachman.

"We all support Pak Rachman. Tell me who doesn't support him?" Barman asked.

Basrief agreed and said: "There's no one in the AGO who wants him to quit. KPKPN must finish its probe to prove the allegations."

Rachman enjoys the supports of not only his subordinates but also from politicians from the major parties.

Politician Ferry Mursydan Baldan of the Golkar party said it was not necessary for the President to suspend Rachman at this point and called on the KPKPN to finish its investigation.

"It's the President's right to install and dismiss an attorney general. However, at this point Rachman has not yet done anything wrong. KPKPN has just sought clarification of his uncompleted wealth report," Ferry said.

Agustin Teras Narang of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle agreed, saying strong evidence was needed to prove the allegations that Rachman concealed assets in his wealth report and had been corrupt.