Devi Asmarani, Jakarta – Several of Indonesia's political parties appear to be backing down from a plan to investigate a financial scandal allegedly involving House Speaker Akbar Tandjung, following reports that several political parties might have also received funds from a state agency.

This latest development may spare Mr Akbar, who chairs the second-largest party in government, Golkar, from a potentially damaging parliamentary probe team, which has already succeeded in unseating former president Abdurrahman Wahid over the misuse of the State Logistics Agency (Bulog) funds.

Several parties, including President Megawati Sukarnoputri's Indonesian Democratic Party-Struggle (PDI-P), the United Development Party (PPP) and the Crescent Star Party (PBB), also misused Bulog funds to finance political campaigns, said Mr Agus Miftach, a former head of the General Election Committee, an independent institution.

A Golkar source also told The Straits Times that former president B.J. Habibie gave out money to 23 parties to block Ms Megawati's attempt to become president and to aid his re-election. In the end, Mr Habibie did not contest the 1999 presidential election after the national assembly rejected his accountability speech.

The source said: "The money could have come from anywhere, Bulog or some other state agency, but it didn't come from his own pocket." All the parties denied the allegations.

The latest scandal, under investigation by the Attorney-General's office, involves 40 billion rupiah (S$7.6 million) from Bulog's non-budgetary funds. Mr Akbar had claimed that the money was disbursed by the state secretary, under the order of Mr Habibie, to provide food for the poor in 1999. He added that the money was channelled to Raudatul Jannah, a Muslim foundation which reportedly bought food for poor villages.

But documents splashed in media reports here showed that the identification cards and signatures of Golkar executives Fahmi Idris and Muhammad Hidayat were used to cash Bulog cheques. The two Golkar men claimed that the signatures and ID cards were forged.

Despite incriminating testimonies against Mr Akbar, few parties in parliament are keen to pursue the case as they did with the last president, saying that the "irregularity" took place in the previous government. PPP deputy secretary-general Bachtiar Chamsyah told The Straits Times: "This case should be in the hands of the judicial process, not political."

While opinion is divided within the PDI-P, its executives have been distancing themselves from the case. "We will not prevent our members from voting for the setting up of the special team, but we are not taking the initiative," said a PDI-P executive.