Abdul Khalik, Jakarta – The Attorney General's Office has sparked controversy by resisting a court order to reopen a Bank Indonesia liquidity support (BLBI) case involving tycoon Sjamsul Nursalim.
The decision to appeal the decision by the South Jakarta District Court was quickly condemned by observers and lawmakers, who said the AGO was not serious about fighting corruption and had sent a signal it was more interested in protecting corruption suspects.
"We filed an appeal with the higher court right after the court's ruling. We just don't agree that the judges have a legal basis to order us to reopen the case," AGO spokesman BD Nainggolan told The Jakarta Post here Tuesday.
He said the AGO had the right to appeal and would not follow the court's order until a final ruling was issued.
Lawmaker Yusron Ihza Mahendra urged the AGO to drop the appeal, hunt down Sjamsul and launch efforts to recover state assets.
"I really don't understand why the AGO should file an appeal. With people's trust in prosecutors waning, the decision only justifies the sense that it just doesn't care about what the public is concerned the most about," he told the Post.
Sjamsul, the owner of the Gajah Tunggal Group and the now-defunct Bank BDNI, is suspected of embezzling trillions of rupiah from the BLBI funds.
The tycoon, who is believed to be living in Singapore, was said to have repaid his Rp 28.4 trillion debt. But the AGO launched a graft investigation after the value of assets he handed over to the state was found to be only Rp 4.9 trillion.
On Feb. 29, 2008, the AGO dropped BLBI cases involving Sjamsul and another tycoon, Anthony Salim, citing a lack of evidence.
Two days later, the Corruption Eradication Commission arrested state prosecutor Urip Tri Gunawan for allegedly accepting a US$660,000 bribe from Artalita Suryani, a businesswoman with links to Sjamsul. Urip led the probe into Sjamsul's involvement in the BLBI case.
The People for a Corruption-Free Indonesia (MAKI) last month filed a motion against the AGO, claiming it lacked a legal basis for halting the investigation into Sjamsul.
The South Jakarta District Court earlier this month ordered the AGO to reopen the cases.
Legal expert Frans H. Winarta said the AGO's appeal would cost it public confidence and hurt the people, who badly need the recovery of the BLBI money at a time of economic difficulties. "To regain public trust, the AGO should quickly reopen the case, instead of appealing the court's ruling," he said.
Yusron and Frans urged the Corruption Eradication Commission to take over all the BLBI cases, citing their loss of faith in the Attorney General's Office.