•    HOME   
•    NEWS   
•    BUSINESS   
•    INTERNATIONAL   
•    TECH   
•    SPORTS   
•    LIFE & TIMES   
•    OPINION   
•    MY JAKARTA   
•    BLOGS   

It is now clear that the House of Representatives inquiry into the Bank Century bailout has no legal authority. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono stated this week that while he respected the decision of the full House, however it votes, the government was not bound by its recommendations.

This leads to one overriding question: What was the real intent of the investigation and who ultimately will be held accountable for the waste of time and resources?

If the House probe has no legal standing, then it is only logical to assume that this was a political exercise. But who benefitted? And why were the hard-working taxpayers of Indonesia left to pick up the tab?

Following this week’s violence outside the House by demonstrators intent on creating an illusion of chaos for the television cameras, lawmakers must also be held accountable for inciting such emotions. The truth of the matter is that after three months of intense questioning, the committee — and now the full House — is split on the outcome of the investigation. The whole process has been politically driven from the beginning, serving the narrow interests of certain political groups.

And it never seems to end. On Wednesday five House factions, including ruling coalition members the Golkar Party and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) , chose what became known as “Option C” as a conclusion, stating that illegalities took place during the bailout. Yudhoyono’s Democratic Party and the National Awakening Party (PKB) were alone in choosing “Option A,” stating that the rescue itself was clean. The National Mandate Party (PAN) and the United Development Party (PPP) chose middle ground that amounted to an abstention.

By late Wednesday evening, however, lawmakers were still trying to decide if they would vote individually on the final word.

The conclusions by the full House leave open the possibility of further investigations into Vice President Boediono and Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati, the apparent targets of the probe from the beginning by forces unhappy with reforms they have instituted in the economy. It would not benefit us to have this process drag on any longer.

The cost to the economy from the divisive special committee has been tremendous. The early stock market swing has evaporated and longer-term investors, both domestic and foreign, are waiting on the sidelines for the House to arrive at its final conclusion. Potential jobs have been lost.

If indeed, nothing ultimately comes of the investigation except for the fraying of the ruling coalition, the main supporters of the process must be taken to task by the public and the media.

The country has lost precious time and critical momentum has been disrupted. This must not continue. We need to move on and not waste any more precious resources.