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Jakarta. Indonesian Football Association officials accused of illegally accepting money from a club official in Samarinda went on the defensive on Wednesday and denied being involved in any unlawful transactions. 

Nurdin Halid, chairman of the association, also known as PSSI, is the most prominent of four officials alleged to have accepted misappropriated state funds totaling Rp 1.78 billion from Aidil Fitri, a former manager of football club Persisam Samarinda in East Kalimantan. 

A criminal case is now being built after Sugeng Purnomo, head of the Samarinda Prosecutor’s Office, said on Tuesday that it was important to follow up on the testimony of Aidil, which linked Nurdin to a number of fraudulent transactions in 2007 and 2008. 

Aidil was sentenced on Feb. 2 to a year in jail and ordered to pay a fine of Rp 50 million ($5,600) after the Samarinda District Court convicted him of misappropriating Rp 1.78 billion in state funds. 

Persisam received Rp 12.5 billion in 2007 and Rp 25 billion in 2008 from the Samarinda city budget, which was during Aidil’s term as manager. Prosecutors found 35 irregular transactions during this period, which resulted in the loss of Rp 1.78 billion. 

In his testimony in court, Aidil said most of the money that was unaccounted for went to Indonesian Football Association (PSSI) officials. 

He claimed that Nurdin received Rp 100 million, PSSI Amateur League chairman Iwan Budianto Rp 600 million, Liga Indonesia chairman Andi Darussalam Tabusalla Rp 80 million and PSSI deputy secretary general Hamka B. Kady Rp 25 million. 

Sugeng said his office was now looking for evidence to back up Aidil’s claim that Nurdin and the other PSSI officials had received the money. 

“We will investigate all those that Aidil said received money,” he told state-run news agency Antara. 

“However, we have not received the official copy of the court’s verdict. Once we have, we will start our investigation.” 

In a statement on the PSSI Web site, Nurdin denied Aidil’s allegation, although he said Aidil had transferred Rp 100 million to the association to help fund the national football team. 

“I never received any money from Aidil. I know him only as the manager of Persisam,” said Nurdin, who is seeking a third term as PSSI chairman in an election to be held on March 19. 

“I learned that he transferred Rp 100 million for the national team, but I personally have never seen nor touched the money.” Iwan said he received money from Aidil in 2007 and 2008 as a “professional fee.” 

“I was not a PSSI official at the time. Aidil asked me to help improve Persisam, which was still in the Premier Division, as technical director. I accepted the job,” he said. 

“I signed a Rp 300 million contract, and received a monthly salary of Rp 25 million for one season. I never asked him where the money came from.” 

Iwan said that after Persisam was promoted to the Indonesian Super League in 2009, he was offered the position of team manager, replacing Aidil.  

“But the PSSI appointed me as Amateur League chairman so I left Persisam,” he said. 

Hamka said he received money from Aidil, but only as “a personal favor.” 

“He offered to help out with my daughter’s wedding party and sent me Rp 25 million. I thought it was his personal money,” he said. 

Andi said he was close with Aidil but denied any wrongdoing. 

“That’s rubbish. I know him well as he’s a friend of mine. I don’t want to pretend that I don’t know him, but I never got a cent from him,” he said. 

Should Samarinda prosecutors pursue the case, Sugeng said the PSSI officials would likely be questioned in Jakarta. “We can question them [at  the Attorney General’s Office],” he said.

JG, Antara