Puteh set to be replaced: Minister

The Jakarta Post, Bandung/Jakarta

Interim chief security minister Hari Sabarno confirmed on Saturday the government had made plans to replace Aceh Governor Abdullah Puteh in order for him to face corruption investigations.

The decision to replace Puteh in his capacity as the province's civil emergency administrator hinged on a presidential decree relieving Puteh of his governorship, Hari said after addressing Public Administration Institute graduates in Semedang, West Java.

"I have had to prepare several alternatives (as candidates for governor) to ensure that Aceh's civil emergency administration will not be hampered by the investigations into the governor," Hari said.

He did not say if Puteh would be permanently removed or suspended as governor.

Earlier on Friday, a source from President Megawati Soekarnoputri's inner circle revealed she was considering two people as replacements for Puteh's job. The replacement would be announced some time next week, the source said.

The two people were a former minister and a former governor, the source said without identifying them.

However, Hari said possible candidates to replace Puteh could also come from be members of the Aceh consultative leadership board (Muspida), including the provincial military or police chief or the head of the local prosecutors office.

"Because the civil emergency administration is the collective responsibility of the board, one member could take over (Puteh's) job temporarily if it was deemed necessary," the minister said.

Hari said the government would replace Puteh to allow the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) more time to investigate him.

The commission questioned the embattled governor for a third consecutive day on Friday over the alleged markup in the price of a Russian-made Mi-2 helicopter. The deal was estimated to have cost the state Rp 4 billion (US$440,000) in losses.

A source close to the KPK said on Saturday the commission was scheduled to meet Megawati on Monday regarding its order for her to suspend Puteh.

"Yes, we have received an invitation from the State Palace for talks where KPK leaders would explain the order to the president," the source told The Jakarta Post.

The source said KPK leaders had already met with Hari and State Secretary Bambang Kesowo on Friday to discuss the issue.

"Basically, the KPK leadership explained the order was merely based on the law and said it had nothing to do with politics," the source said.

Megawati last week said she could not accept the KPK's suspension order. As president, Megawati said she was only authorized by the law to "appoint" and "dismiss" regional administration heads.

In her campaign last month, however, Megawati vowed to make Puteh a "non-active" governor while he was under investigation.

The National Police have also established a corruption case against Puteh over his alleged involvement in the alleged markup in the prices of new power generators, which caused estimated state losses of Rp 30 billion.

A team of police investigators led by the National Police chief of detectives, Comr. Gen. Suyitno Landung, met KPK members on Friday to share information on Puteh.

Suyitno said the police would summon Puteh for the second time regarding the power generator scandal. Puteh could be declared a suspect in the case if sufficient evidence was found, he said.

Puteh has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing in both cases. He said the purchase of the helicopter by his administration had been endorsed by the Aceh legislative council.

There was no need to hold a tender for the purchase, he said, citing Presidential Decree No. 18/2000. The decree allows administrations to skip the tendering process for goods valued at more than Rp 5 billion in cases of emergency or when buying "sensitive" materials, including explosives.

Puteh said he had decided to buy an assault helicopter because such as aircraft was needed to help crush Free Aceh Movement (GAM) separatists.

The armed helicopter was used to transport local officials, including Puteh, around the province. It was brought for Rp 12.2 billion, more than twice the price the Navy reportedly paid for the same type of aircraft.