Jakarta – The House of Representatives' Ethics Council has launched a probe into potential violations committed by House Speaker Setya Novanto and his deputy, Fadli Zon, in what has been dubbed "the Trump fiasco."
The controversy arose after Setya and Fadli attended a campaign event for US presidential hopeful Donald Trump on Sept. 3 in New York.
Sufmi Dasco, a deputy chairman at the ethics council, said a team was working to verify video recordings of the encounter at the Trump Tower. The House Secretariat is also being consulted to confirm how many legislators were part of the group.
"We are still verifying all the files to find out whether this case is worth to be brought to hearings or not," Sufi said.
Setya, a Golkar Party politician, has also drawn fire after being spotted wearing a Swiss-made Richard Mille watch, purported to be worth $140,000, at the event. He said on Monday that he believed no ethics had been violated and welcomed a possible probe by the ethics council.
Lawmakers from Indonesia had gone to New York to attend the Fourth World Conference of Speakers of Parliament hosted by the International Parliamentary Union, a United Nations agency.
Tommy Legowo, an analyst from the voter advocacy group Concerned Citizens for the Indonesian Legislature (Formappi), said the appearance of Setya and Fadli at the Trump event went against the Constitution and 1999 Law on Foreign Affairs, which highlights the principle of Indonesia's "free and active" foreign policy.
The event they attended saw Trump sign a loyalty pledge to the Republican Party for his support of the eventual nominee in next year's election, which Tommy said should be seen as part of a political campaign.
Hary Tanoe
Meanwhile, Arya Sinulingga, the corporate secretary of media conglomerate MNC, confirmed that chief executive Hary Tanoesudibjo had facilitated the meeting between the legislators and Trump.
"Yes, it was [Hary]. So what?," he said when contacted by journalists on Thursday. When asked what the goal of the meeting was, Arya said it was to discuss investment and to strengthen political networks.
The presence of Setya was not MNC's concern and it would not be a problem if Hary was summoned to a hearing at the House, he said.
Hary, a Surabaya-born businessman, has himself forayed into national politics with ties to the National Democrat Party (NasDem) and the People's Conscience Party (Hanura) before establishing the United Indonesian Party (Perindo).
MNC, a conglomerate with a diversified businesses ranging from media and property companies, to infrastructure and financial services, has a long-established business relationship with Trump. Most recently, MNC announced plans to develop a six-star hotel in Sukabumi, West Java, in cooperation with the Trump Hotel Collection, a luxury chain owned by the American tycoon.