Markus Junianto Sihaloho – An outspoken Democratic Party legislator on Tuesday accused other members of House of Representatives Commission III of using their power to protect business interests.
Ruhut Sitompul, the Democrat spokesman, said some legislators on the commission, which oversees legal affairs, were acting as "legal bodyguards" for wealthy businesspeople.
"At many commission hearings, they work to back up the businesspeople, they accommodate the interests of the businesspeople and they sometimes use their position to attack opponents of these businesspeople," he said.
While not naming names, Ruhut claimed certain individuals were "playing around" in cases such as the ownership dispute of the former Televisi Pendidikan Indonesia (TPI).
That dispute involves media tycoon Harry Tanoesoedibjo and Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana. Last month a Jakarta court ruled in favor of Siti – the daughter of the late President Suharto and a Golkar Party stalwart.
Ruhut also said there had been House meddling in the decision to jail Yusak Yaluwo, the Democrat head of Papua's Boven Digoel district, for corruption. He added that he was gathering facts to back up his allegations and would file a complaint with the House Ethics Council.
A source at House Commission III, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Jakarta Globe that some legislators were believed to act as brokers in legal cases. The source said they included Syarifuddin Sudding, from the People's Conscience Party (Hanura), and Ahmad Yani, from the United Development Party (PPP)
Both denied the accusations, but Yani acknowledged that he had made several statements in support of Harry during the TPI saga.
"But that was only because I felt law enforcers were criminalizing him," he said. "I was just doing my job as a legislator, monitoring and supervising law enforcers," he added.
Nasir Jamil, a Commission III legislator from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), said the accusations likely sprang from the fact that a quarter of the commission's members were lawyers, including Syarifuddin, Yani and Ruhut, and were often asked to represent businesspeople or district heads in legal cases.
He added he often received similar requests, stressing the practice should not be seen as an abuse of power.
"But if legislators intervene in the legal process, then that's a violation of the law," Nasir said. "If there really is evidence of legislators taking bribes to help influence certain legal cases, then just file a complaint with the KPK [Corruption Eradication Commission]," he said.