Andreas D. Arditya, Jakarta – State Minister for National Development Planning Paskah Suzetta has been implicated for the second time in as many weeks in the alleged misappropriation of Rp 100 billion (US$10.9 million) of Bank Indonesia funds.
Former BI deputy governor Aulia Pohan claimed he heard from defendant Rusli Simanjuntak, former BI communications head, that Paskah held a meeting with then BI governor Burhanuddin Abdullah and Rusli in 2005.
"There were several important things Rusli failed to inform me about, such as a meeting between Burhanuddin and Paskah, which was also attended by Rusli, Lukifatul and Lukman Benyamin at Le Meridien Hotel in Jakarta," Aulia said in his testimony.
Aulia, whose daughter is married to the son of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, was responding to a question by prosecutor Agus Salim if he had anything else to disclose. The panel of judges, however, refused to pursue the statement, saying it should come from Rusli himself.
Aulia said Rusli told him about the meeting when Aulia visited him at the Mobile Brigade detention center in Depok in early March 2008. No clarification was given on when exactly the meeting took place and for what purposes.
Last week, Golkar Party legislator Hamka Yandhu testified before the same court that he gave fellow legislators Paskah and Malam Sambat Ka'ban Rp 1 billion and Rp 300 million each from the allegedly misappropriated BI funds in 2003. Ka'ban is the current forestry minister.
Both Paskah and Ka'ban were summoned by the President on Monday to clarify Hamka's allegations.
In his testimony, Aulia said members of the BI board of governors ordered the disbursement of the funds to a public relations committee.
Aulia admitted to ordering Rusli to disburse the money to members of the House of Representatives' Commission IX (which oversees financial affairs) in 2003. "I ordered Rusli to do it because it had been decided earlier on by the board of governors," Aulia said.
The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) alleges the BI board of governors agreed in a June 3, 2003, meeting to disburse the money to House Commission IX to resolve the BI liquidity support (BLBI) case and the amendment of the BI law, and to five former BI officials who were implicated in the BLBI corruption case to obtain legal assistance.
Burhanuddin, Rusli and former BI legal affairs deputy Oey Hoey Tiong are standing trial for the case. Aulia and three other former BI deputy governors – Maman Soemantri, Bun Bunan Hutapea and Aslim Tadjuddin – are also implicated in the case.
Aulia insisted the purpose of the disbursement was to promote BI's image in the public, with help from the legislators. The promotion was considered necessary in 2003 after the Supreme Audit Agency gave the bank's 2002 financial report a disclaimer status.