Probe demanded for past corruption cases
JAKARTA (JP): Legislators proposed on Wednesday that the House of Representatives (DPR) probe past major corruption cases, including the alleged misappropriation of Rp 144 trillion (US$14.6 billion) Bank Indonesia Liquidity Support (BLBI) funds and corruption at several projects of state-owned oil and gas company Pertamina.
Legislator Tari Siwi Utami said while addressing a House plenary session that the reason to conduct a probe into the cases was because they contributed disproportionately to the downfall of the country's economy.
"The Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) has reported that 98 percent of BLBI funds have been misused and the government has to continue paying the debts because of its decision to support the weakening national banks," Tari, a legislator from the National Awakening Party (PKB) faction, told the session.
She cited that the legal basis of the investigation was Law No. 28/1999 on clean government and Law No. 4/1999 on ranks and position of legislators who possess the right to conduct investigations.
"The goals of the investigation are to uphold the supremacy of the law, to take account of state finances, to speed up the return of funds and to create a clean government," Tari said in the session, presided over by deputy House speaker Soetardjo Soerjogoeritno.
The proposal has won the support of 107 legislators from various factions. It was reported earlier that most of the initiators of the proposal were PKB legislators and their colleagues from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan).
Also on Wednesday, legislators proposed an investigation into corruption cases connected with Pertamina that had caused trillions of rupiah in state losses.
"For example, in 1995-1996 there was a report of a corruption case in Pertamina that cost the country some Rp 82.6 billion, in 1996-1997 some Rp 476 billion and in 1997-1998 some Rp 1.3 trillion," Achmad Satibi, also from PKB, told a later House plenary session.
He said in the session, presided over by deputy House speaker A.M. Fatwa, that the proposal won the support of 119 legislators from various factions.
The House has increasingly used its right to investigate certain high-profile cases in the country, the most widely supported so far has been the investigation into President Abdurrahman Wahid's alleged involvement in the Rp 35 billion scandal at the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) and the unaccounted for US$2 million donation from Brunei's Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah.
The House finally censured Abdurrahman late last January and agreed to issue a memorandum, that could lead to an impeachment of the President. (dja)