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Jail Demanded for Politicians in Miranda Case
Rizky Amelia & Heru Andriyanto | June 09, 2011

Prosecutors demanded a three-years prison term against Panda Nababan of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P). He allegedly played an important role in the bribery scandal related to the voting of Miranda Goeltom as central bank senior deputy governor. (JG Photo/Afriadi Hikmal) Prosecutors demanded a three-years prison term against Panda Nababan of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P). He allegedly played an important role in the bribery scandal related to the voting of Miranda Goeltom as central bank senior deputy governor. (JG Photo/Afriadi Hikmal)
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masmon2
9:59am Jun 10, 2011

Padt - yes it is a veritable spiders web where everyone is compromised from the top to the bottom.

"the tap on the shoulder" is exactly right - this is what thy all fear and will do whatever they can to avoid. Ultimately justice is a tool that is bought and used against your enemies once cornered.

padt
12:13pm Jun 9, 2011

masmon - thanks for this information. So it seems the answers are not the only thing that people need to look for - but some questions also. But when the questions are not allowed to be asked......

Obviously the questions are hanging in the air waiting to be asked though.

It would seem though that some people are untouchable while there is weak law enforcement - or the lack of political will to do anything about it, presumably because one tap on the shoulder can lead to another tap on the shoulder and one denounced corrupt person could dob in another and on and on it goes and and who knows (perhaps we do) where that might lead?


masmon
11:18am Jun 9, 2011

Padt, you need to follow the money trail to see where this leads.

The PPATK uncovered that the travellers cheques were purchased by a company called PT First Mujur Plantation - the owner of which is a rather well known business figure.

Remember 97/98 and the fraud committed over the bank liquidity credits - I can only summise that it is over this that certain people want to ensure that they are not investigated - having a key figure on the inside of BI would certainly help to achieve this end.

All of the above is info that is readily available (even on the Internet).

So the question is, why does the police or AGO or KPK do nothing about it ?

padt
8:41am Jun 9, 2011

In all this rigamarole - I have yet to have it explained to me what is obviously an important question and possibly the key to the whole issue: WHY WAS IT IMPORTANT THAT MIRANDA GOELTOM BE ELECTED AS DEPUTY GOVENOR OF THIS BANK?

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In marathon hearings, prosecutors on Wednesday recommended jail terms ranging from 18 months to three years for 20 senior politicians, including former and sitting lawmakers as well as a former minister.

They allegedly accepted bribes in exchange for voting for Miranda Goeltom as central bank senior deputy governor in 2004.

The highest sentence demand was made against Panda Nababan, an Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) politician believed to have played an important role in the scandal.

Prosecutors demanded that the court fine all the defendants Rp 50 million  ($5,800) each, and ordered them to surrender to the state the ill-gotten money they allegedly received in travelers’ checks.

Paskah Suzeta, former minister for the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas), reacted calmly to the prosecution’s demands as he maintained his innocence.

“For me, the sentence is not the principal issue. What’s more significant to prove is whether there was a conspiracy within the Golkar Party,” Paskah said.

“The connection between the travelers’ checks and Miranda still cannot be proven,” he added, arguing that he was charged with bribery but it remained unclear who had paid the money.

Of all the politicians for whom sentence demands were made, Paskah and Baharudin Aritonang heard demands of 2.5 year jail terms — higher than most others because they refused to admit their crime.

The reading of the prosecution’s arguments against Panda turned noisy when the defendant insisted that three more witnesses be questioned before the sentencing demand was read.

Panda said the witnesses were important to clarify his claim that he never once met Nunun Nurbaeti, the woman who remains at large and who has been accused of being the source of the travelers’ checks. She is now a suspect in the scandal and believed to be in Cambodia.

When the judges turned down Panda’s request, he demanded that the prosecution read out the entire  250-page document.

This resulted in hours being spent on the reading, which dragged on until after 10 p.m.

“Three years is too lenient for me given, the way how prosecutors made the indictment. Why not five or seven years?” said Panda, a lawmaker for the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).

Prosecutors also recommended that the suspect repay Rp 1.95 billion he allegedly received in kickbacks in the scandal.

The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) named 26 lawmakers from the 1999-2004 period as suspects in connection with Miranda Goeltom’s selection as Bank Indonesia senior deputy governor.

Two of them, Poltak Sitorus and Jefri Tongas Lumban, died of natural causes during the lengthy course of legal proceedings.

The lawmakers are accused of taking between Rp 150 million and Rp 600 million each in return for voting Miranda into the central bank post.

No charge has ever been brought against Miranda.