By Andi Abdussalam
Jakarta, Dec 2 (ANTARA) - The Bank Century case should be investigated and taken to court as soon as possible so that the issue which involves a bailout of Rp6.7 trillion will not be used by irresponsible parties to spread slander and mutual suspicions.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono himself said he wanted the legal process involving Bank Century executives to be completed as soon as possible so that justice could be upheld.
"I have told government officials and law enforcers that I want the legal process against the Bank Century executives to be expedited. If two of them have fled, they have to be tried in absentia," the president said when spoke to the 23rd Women's Congress on Wednesday.
The president made the remarks only one day after the House of Representatives (DPR) approved a proposal of over 500 legislators to use their inquiry right to investigate the bank's bailout.
The House itself will form a special inquiry committee on Friday (Dec. 4, 2009) to look into the bailout after the State Audit Board (BPK) had reported it suspected there had been an effort to engineer additional bailout funds (PMS) for the bank.
There had been allegations that President Yudhoyono's electoral campaign team was one of the parties had received funds from the flows of the bailout transfers. The president said that the allegation was a character assassination attack on his electoral campaign team.
"There is a campaign of exaggerated slander and character assassination. It is said an amount of Bank Century funds was transferred to the SBY presidential election success team. I can say now none of my electoral success team members had desired, much less received a single rupiah from an illegal fund," the president said.
Therefore the president called for immediate investigation and legal settlement of Bank Century so that its case would be brought to light and existing suspicions would be eliminated.
"I want the handling of this case to be accelerated and hopefully with the support of all sides, the court proceedings will not last too long so that a better solution to solve all this could be made," the president said.
This is to avoid further slander. On Tuesday, Chief Security Minister Djoko Suyanto reported a non-governmental organization to the Jakarta Police for defamation with regard to the Bank Century case.
On the occasion, Djoko Susanto was accompanied by Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Hatta Radjasa, Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Andi Mallarangeng and lawyer Amir Syamsuddin.
The names of Djoko Suyanto, Hatta Radjasa, Andi Mallarangeng (Yudhoyono's electoral campaign team members) and a number of institutions and political parties were mentioned by the West Java - Jakarta Activists Network as the parties that had received Rp1.8 trillion in Bank Century funds.
According to Yudhoyono, his electoral campaign team was currently the target of a character assassination attack that had gone too far in connection with the Bank Century bailout case.
He said that Indonesia as a law-abiding nation should uphold justice in its efforts disclose the truth, not through the slander now being spread by irresponsible parties.
"We want all this to be brought to light. Let us make everything clear. The House of Representatives will use its right of inquiry to follow up the findings of the State Audit Board (BPK). That would be good. Make everything clear. So, please disclose the truth and the facts but don't disseminate slander," the president said.
Yudhoyono said he wanted the legal process involving Bank Century executives to be completed as soon as possible so that justice could be upheld. "I want the handling of this case to be accelerated and hopefully with the support of all sides, the court proceedings will not last too long so that a better solution to solve all this could be made," the president added.
The president said that the government had also asked that Bank Century assets flown and stashed in a number of countries worth Rp11 trillion should be frozen and be returned to the state and people.
The case came up to the surface when Bank Century almost collapsed some time ago after its assets worth Rp11 trillion were flown and stashed overseas by major share-holder Robert Tantular. In order to help the ailing bank, the government provided it with bailout funds amounting to Rp6.7 trillion without the approval of the House of Representatives (DPR).
Besides a special House inquiry committee, the case will also be investigated by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).
The KPK has asked for cooperation from the Financial Transactions Reporting and Analysis Center (PPATK) to help investigate alleged crimes in the bank. According to Acting KPK Chief Tumpak Hatorangan Panggabean, his commission had written to the PPATK with regard to the cooperation to investigate the case.
"Yes, we have. I signed the letter yesterday," Tumpak said on the sidelines of a national conference on corruption eradication efforts.***4*** (T.A014/A/HAJM/19:55/A/O001) (T.A014/A/A014/A/O001) 02-12-2009 20:04:21
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