Threats rife ahead of DPR probe talks

Threats rife ahead of DPR probe talks

Kurniawan Hari and Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post,
Jakarta

The Golkar Party is employing a strategy of intimidation and
threats to block a plan on Thursday to establish an inquiry into
a Rp 40 billion (US$4 million) corruption scandal, popularly
known as Bulogate II, that implicates its chairman Akbar
Tandjung.

Golkar, the second largest faction in the House of
Representatives, threatened on Wednesday to withdraw its support
from President Megawati Soekarnoputri's Cabinet, whose membership
consists of representatives of various parties.

The party also threatened to deploy about 2,000 of its
supporters to the House of Representatives complex, where a
plenary session with the main agenda of working out the details
of the plan, and the Attorney General's Office, where another
interrogation of Akbar as one of the suspects in the scandal, are
due to take place.

Golkar member Fachri Andi Laluasa said the protesters would
come from Lampung in the southern tip of Sumatra, Banten in
western Java, Central Java, North Sumatra and Greater Jakarta.

"We have been supporting the current government. If PDI
Perjuangan put us in difficulties, we have to take action. We
will withdraw our support from the Gotong Royong Cabinet,"
Anthony Z. Abidin, another Golkar member, said referring to the
Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, which is led by
Megawati.

Akbar, who will be the main target of the inquiry committee if
it is established, is accused of misusing Rp 40 billion in non-
budgetary funds from the State Logistics Agency (Bulog), which
were allegedly used to fund Golkar electioneering activities when
he was minister/state secretary under former president B.J.
Habibie in 1999.

The Rp 40 billion was part of a Rp 54.6 billion fund that was
disbursed by Bulog in several installments for humanitarian
programs during the peak of the country's economic crisis.

Besides Akbar, former Bulog chief Rahardi Ramelan, his deputy
Achmad Ruskandar, and Raudhatul Jannah foundation chairman Dadang
Sukandar, who was in charge of distributing the food packages
that were supposedly paid for out of the funds, have all been
declared suspects in the scandal.

Golkar's co-chairman Fahmi Idris confirmed the threat, saying
that his party would "review and redefine its short and long-term
political stances".

Fahmi added that the redefinition of its political stances
would be quickly followed up by action.

The proposal to launch an inquiry committee was submitted last
October by a group of 50 legislators organized by the National
Awakening Party (PKB).

The move by PKB, which was founded by former president
Abdurrahman Wahid, was considered by many as an act of revenge
against Golkar, which played an important role in unseating
Abdurrahman in July 2000.

A similar committee was set up in 2000 to question Abdurrahman
about the fraudulent withdrawal of Rp 35 billion from Bulog and
also a $2 million donation from the Sultan of Brunei, which the
former president claimed was a personal gift.

The co-chairperson of the PKB faction, Tari Siwi Utami,
revealed that her faction had gained more support in the plan to
form a special committee of inquiry into the scandal.

"We keep on lobbying other factions and legislators
individually because we are aware of the quick changes in
politics," Tari told reporters here on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, PDI Perjuangan top executives played down Golkar's
plan to use mass mobilization, but warned their own supporters
not to follow suit.

"It (the use of mob) reflects how panic Golkar is ahead of the
plenary House meeting," PDI Perjuangan deputy chairman Roy BB
Janis said on the sidelines of a party meeting at Menara
Peninsula Hotel on Wednesday night.

He said the meeting was aimed at putting the final touch to
the draft of the PDI Perjuangan faction's stance to be presented
during Thursday's session.

Four party functionaries Dwi Riya Latifa, Panda Nababan, Amin
Aryoso and Teras Narang brought the draft to party chairwoman
Megawati Soekarnoputri for approval.

Latifa, one of 50 House legislators who proposed the
establishment of the committee of inquiry, would read PDI
Perjuangan faction's response.