Nivell Rayda – The battle over George Junus Aditjondro's controversial book "Membongkar Gurita Cikeas", or "Unravelling the Cikeas Octopus", heated up on Wednesday with the publisher saying that more detailed allegations over campaign financing irregularities would be presented in a revised edition soon.

Julius Felicianus, chief executive officer of Galang Press, told the Jakarta Globe that many government insiders and officials had come forward following the book's launch two weeks ago to offer George information and data to support the claims made in his book.

"The response was overwhelming. The data presented by these people surprised even George himself," Julius said. "George is now writing intensively. Our next version will be much more comprehensive."

The book accuses President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's Democratic Party of funneling money from the 2008 PT Bank Century bailout through various foundations to finance last year's election campaigns.

Several major bookstores refused to sell the book and it was even threatened with a formal ban, despite the fact that most of the claims in the book stem from second-hand sources and information that has already been circulating on the Internet.

The book gained even more notoriety last week after George used a copy to smack a lawmaker in the face during a heated public discussion of the book's merits. The book now sells for as much Rp 150,000 ($16.20) in the second-hand market, almost five times the cover price of Rp 36,000, and pirated editions are being peddled on the street.

Also on Wednesday, former journalist Setiyadi Negara launched a slim volume that purports to counter Gurita Cikeas, titled "Hanya Fitnah dan Cari Sensasi, George Revisi Buku" or "Nothing More than Slander and Sensationalism: George Revise Your Book".

In his 31-page volume, Setiyadi comments on the apparent flaws of George's book but fails to present new information or data. Setiyadi accuses George of distorting news reports to support his claims.

Political analyst Alfan Alfian, a speaker at Setiyadi's book launch, said the new book was nothing more than a "lengthy book review." Setiyadi said he wrote the book on his own initiative and was not influenced by the government or Yudhoyono's political allies. "My only motivation is to question the methodology used by George," Setiyadi said. "George's thoughts are too filled with conspiracy theories."