South Korean defendant denies workers' testimony

South Korean defendant denies workers' testimony

JAKARTA (JP): The defendant in the trial of the Grogol flyover
accident denied he told workers to remove bracings supporting a
section of the construction.

"I came to the location at around 8:20 a.m. (and, before the
accident) angrily shouted, 'Who ordered the bracings to be
removed?'", LBW, the South Korean defendant said yesterday
through his translator.

LBW made the statement at West Jakarta District Court
following testimony from the fifth and final witness scheduled
for the day. The witnesses were workers from PT Hanbo Bumi Karsa,
the South Korean and Indonesian contractor that built the
flyover.

LBW also denied the testimonies of witnesses who told the
court he directly ordered them to set up the bracings again prior
to the accident. He said he addressed the order to supervisor
Mansyur.

At the time of the March 22 accident, LBW was deputy general
manager and superintendent of the company.

LBW is being charged with negligence which led to the collapse
of 30 meters of the overpass. Three workers were killed and 17
were injured in the accident.

Police said earlier the dossier of the other suspect, LBW's
superior, KHW, has not yet been received by the prosecutor.

Meanwhile, the witnesses at yesterday's session of the trial,
presided over by Judge M. Suleman, denied certain parts of the
testimonies they had given to police.

One said he forgot several parts, though none said they were
pressured during the time they were questioned.

The first witness of yesterday's session Sudarsono, a foreman,
denied having said he saw around 100 bracings missing before the
accident.

"Some were missing, but I did not count them," Sudarsono said.

He said he had only received a report from a security guard,
Rasdi, that the condition of the construction looked dangerous.
Sudarsono said he immediately reported this to LBW. However, LBW
later told the court he did not receive such a report from
Sudarsono.

Confusion and laughter filled the court room when second
witness Dapi bin Otong took the stand. Compared to the others,
the 19-year-old had the most difficulty in understanding
questions from the panel of three judges, prosecutor Sidik
Latuconsina and lawyer Prastowo.

Dapi, whose brother Wandi was among the three killed men, said
he forgot many parts of his testimony to the police.

Ilyas bin Sidik, another worker in charge of wood works at the
project, which involved the placement of wooden planks and beams
to aid in overpass construction, said "around 50 percent" of the
bracings were missing before the accident.

However, he denied telling the police it was LBW who ordered
the removal of the bracings. He said it was his foreman, Sarim,
who gave the instruction.

During an earlier hearing, LBW questioned Sarim's testimony in
regard to the time he gave the order. However, he did not deny
giving the order.

All the witnesses said it was the first time in their work
experience that bracings were removed in such a short time, only
four days after the pouring of the concrete. They said it usually
took two to three weeks.

The next trial session, during which testimonies will be heard
from five other workers, will be held next week.

The remaining witnesses from a total of 34 will include
representatives of the other parties involved in the project: The
Ministry of Public Works and the project's consultants.
Consultants include the Japan-based PCI & Yec, PT Bandung
Industrial Engineering Consultant and PT Indec. (anr)