Govt issues travel ban to media tycoon in expanding website graft case

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Thu, 12/25/2008 5:16 PM  |  National

Immigration authorities have issued a order banning business leader Hartono Tanoesoedibjo, brother of media mogul Harry Tanoesoedibjo, from leaving the country for his alleged ties to
the misappropriated website fees collected for the Justice and Human Rights Ministry.

The directorate's investigative head R. Muchdor said Thursday his office had issued the ban Tuesday, effective for one year.

"We have issued the ban upon the request of the Attorney General's Office (AGO) to facilitate their investigation," he told tempointeraktif.com.

The AGO's assistant attorney for special crimes Marwan Effendy said the investigators were scheduled to grill Hartono after year-end holiday season.

He said investigators planned to question Hartono about Yohannes Waworuntu's testimony in which the latter said he had signed a cooperative letter with the ministry because Hartono had forced the issue.

Yohannes is the director of PT Sarana Rekatama Dinamika (SRD). Yohannes reports to Hartono in his role as a principal SRD shareholder. Hartono and his brother Harry are both commissioners for Bhakti Investama which owns several private media outlets, including TV RCTI, Global TV and TPI.

The AGO has named Yohannes as a suspect along with the ministry's former director general for public legal administration Romli Atmasasmita, his successors Syamsuddin Manan Sinaga and
Zulkarnain Yunus and the ministry's cooperative chair Ali Amran Djannah.

The case revolves around the embezzlement of fees paid through the website for setting up new legal entities, as required by the Directorate General of Legal Administration. The system has been operational since 2001 and is accessible through the ministry's website www.sisminbakum.com.

The AGO has said the fees collected should have gone to the state as nonrevenue. Instead, officials at the directorate general allegedly transferred 90 percent of the revenue to SRD, with the remaining 10 percent going to public officials. The AGO says the case has resulted in Rp 400 billion (US$ 35.3 million) in state losses. (ewd)
 
 

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