Prosecutor says Bank Bali 10 dossiers lacking

Prosecutor says Bank Bali 10 dossiers lacking

JAKARTA (JP): The Jakarta Prosecutor's Office has rejected
dossiers of the 10 suspects in the Bank Bali scandal due to a
"minor technicality", a senior official at the National Police
said on Monday.

Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Togar Sianipar said the
prosecutor's office wanted the suspects to be listed according to
a clear definition of the charges they faced.

He said the dossiers should have been put into two categories
-- one for those who allegedly breached Banking Law No. 10/1998,
and the other for suspects who violated Article 372, concerning
embezzlement, of the Criminal Code.

"It's a minor technicality. We'll make the changes as soon as
possible and return the dossiers to them. This is normal. It
happens all the time," Togar said at National Police
Headquarters.

The police sent the dossiers of the 10 suspects on Thursday.
The suspects are former Bank Bali president Rudy Ramli and four
former directors and senior managers of the bank, two deputy
chairmen of the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA), two
businessmen affiliated with President B.J. Habibie's inner circle
in the ruling Golkar Party and an official of Bank Indonesia.

Analysts were quick to decry the rejection of the dossiers as
a further indication of the government's foot-dragging in the
investigation of the scandal, which was first exposed in the
media in July.

In a related development, chief of the Supreme Audit Agency
(BPK) Satrio Billy Yudono stressed on Monday that he would not
disclose the full PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) audit report on
transactions in the scandal despite pressure from the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank.

"I've said this several times already," he said when asked to
comment on the disappointment expressed by the donor institutions
in a letter sent to the Coordinating Minister for Economy,
Finance and Industry Ginandjar Kartasasmita as reported by Kompas
daily on Monday.

The IMF and the World Bank have withheld aid disbursement for
Indonesia until the government resolves the Bank Bali scandal
satisfactorily.

Yudono said previously that the complete PwC audit report --
which contains information on activity in the bank accounts of
people allegedly involved in the scandal -- could not be
disclosed on account of the law governing BPK and the banking
secrecy law.

BPK only furnished the full PwC report to the police. The
police have said they would treat the report as mere input
because its methodology was doubtful.

Asked to comment on the letter reportedly sent to Ginandjar,
Yudono appeared skeptical. "Where's the letter? Let's read it
together," he said.

When asked if he would disclose the PwC audit report if the
IMF and World Bank letter did exist, he declined to answer. "You
have disturbed my right to go home," he said.

The government's determination not to disclose the full audit
report has fanned suspicions of a cover-up orchestrated by
Habibie's inner circle.

The scandal revolves around the transfer of Rp 546 billion
from the bank to PT Era Giat Prima (EGP) as a commission for
helping the bank to recoup some Rp 904 billion in interbank loans
to closed banks.

The government said Bank Bali should have not used the
services of EGP because the loans were guaranteed by the
government under its blanket guarantee program.

Meanwhile, Bank Indonesia deputy governor Subarjo Joyosumarto
said on Monday the IMF had sent a representative to Jakarta to
discuss the bank restructuring program. (rei/ylt)