Tony Hotland, Jakarta – A brief commotion ended a five-hour hearing between the Attorney General's Office (AGO) and the House of Representatives on Thursday following a lawmaker's remark depicting Attorney General Abdul Rahman Saleh as "an Islamic preacher in a village of thieves".
Hosted by House Commissions II and III, the hearing kicked off hospitably with discussions centering around the detention of regional councillors accused of embezzling public funds.
Lawmakers questioned the detention saying it was unlawful, because prosecutors had used Presidential Regulation No. 110/2000 on local council budgets that had been annulled by the Supreme Court in 2002.
In defense, Abdul Rahman said the regulation was still applicable for prosecuting cases that took place before the regulation was revoked.
"Besides, we're not only using that regulation, we are also using other laws, including Law No. 28/1999 on clean governance, Law No. 20/2001 on corruption eradication, and other regulations," he said.
The hearing became heated when certain lawmakers, mostly from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP), accused prosecutors of being biased and politicizing cases as many of the detained local lawmakers were from PDIP.
PDIP is chaired by former president Megawati Soekarnoputri who was defeated by current President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in last year's presidential elections.
"We're targeting those alleged to have committed acts of corruption regardless of their parties or affiliations. Prosecutors are keeping them behind bars, even though they have not yet been proven guilty, because of the fear that they might flee, destroy evidence or threaten witnesses. For those former administration officials who have not been detained, this is because we still lack evidence," said Abdul Rahman.
The legislators, who repeatedly interrupted Abdul Rahman's answers, also brought up other issues, including reports of prosecutors blackmailing and "playing dirty" with local councillors so they could avoid being linked to the cases.
Since the beginning the reformation era 1998, no prosecutors have ever been found guilty or dismissed for corrupt misconduct, despite numerous accusations from the public.
A lawmaker from the Reform Star Party, Anhar SE, even felt sorry for Abdul Rahman, who is known to have clean record, saying he was like an Islamic preacher in a village of thieves.
Far from being flattered, Anhar's remark prompted Abdul Rahman's anger, who said the comment was inappropriate and hurtful, especially as he was accompanied by a number of high-ranking prosecutors.
"We want an apology and the remark withdrawn," he said, followed by a burst of approval from fellow prosecutors. Aceh prosecutor office head Andi Amir Ahmad even stood up and shouted loudly at the lawmakers, demanding their respect. Lawmakers joined in the commotion, telling him to leave the room.
Hearing chairman Teras Narang said legislators did not have to apologize or withdraw their statements because lawmakers had immunity under Law No. 22/2003 on the position of legislators and councillors.
In response, Abdul Rahman quoted the same law saying that legislators were obliged to uphold ethics and norms in their relationships with other institutions.
Both sides eventually decided to end the hearing without making any decisions. Abdul Rahman and Teras made their peace by shaking hands and pressing cheeks.