Constitutional Court chief says blank check lawsuit against him is ridiculous

Mahfud MD: (JP/R. Berto Wedhatama)Constitutional Court Chief Mahfud MD said Wednesday it was ridiculous that a party sued him over a blank check in the court cooperative, worth Rp 4.2 billion (US$466,000).

"If the People Consultatives Assembly chairman must be held responsible for fraud that occurred in the assembly secretariat general, and if the President is responsible for any wrongdoings in the state secretariat, that is really ridiculous," Mahfud said as quoted by kompas.com at a press conference.

He said the Constitutional Court chief had no structural relationship with the court cooperative.

"Although I am the Constitutional Court chief, I am not a member of the court cooperative," he added.

Mahfud said the Constitutional Court chief acted only as an external supervisor along with an official from the Cooperative and Small-Medium Enterprises Ministry, and the Cooperative Movement Institutem, as stipulated by law.

"The Constitutional Court chief and the court cooperation relation is equal to the relation between the court cooperative and the State Minister for the Cooperative and Small Medium Enterprises," he said.