T

he Golkar Party is planning to summon two of its members who stand accused by graft convict Muhammad Nazaruddin of being complicit in a corruption case surrounding the National Police’s driving simulator project.

Nazaruddin said on Thursday that Bambang Soesatyo and Azis Syamsuddin of Golkar and Herman Herry of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), were implicated in the driving simulator scandal at the National Police Traffic Corps (Korlantas).

The three politicians are members of the House of Representatives’ Commission III overseeing security and legal affairs.

“I was questioned about the simulator case that involves Azis Syamsuddin, Herman Herry and Bambang Soesatyo,” Nazaruddin said at the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) headquarters, as quoted by kompas.com.

Bambang and Azis were quick to brush off the allegation, claiming that the project was never deliberated at the House. The police solely managed the project because it was funded by non-tax revenues,
Bambang said.

“His statement is not true at all. The simulator provision has no connection with the House, including its budget committee or Commission III as the police’s partner,” he said on Thursday.

Although Bambang and Azis have strongly denied their involvement, Golkar faction secretary Ade Komaruddin said the party would seek further clarification from them.

“I have discussed with [Golkar faction chairman] Pak Setya Novanto, we want to summon them. We were planning to meet them today, but they have not responded our invitation,” Ade said on Friday, as quoted by tribunnews.com.

Ade added that the party would not interfere with the KPK’s investigation into Azis and Bambang if the antigraft commission had obtained enough evidence of their involvement in the Rp 200 billion (US$20 million) scandal.

Meanwhile, PDI-P faction leader Puan Maharani said her party had not set a meeting date with Herman. PDI-P, she said, would await the results of the KPK investigation before summoning its member.

“I have not met Pak Herman Herry, I have not made an order to summon him over the allegation. We do not want to make any assumptions,” she said at the House complex on Friday.

Puan said the party would not protect its members who were involved in corruption cases. “If that person asks for legal aid, then we will provide it,” she added.

The KPK has named former Korlantas chief Insp. Gen. Djoko Susilo as the main suspect in the driving simulator scandal.

The KPK suspects that Djoko wired the money he allegedly swindled from the procurement project to his second wife, Dipta Anindita and a female friend, Poppy Femialya.

So far, the KPK have seized ten houses belonging to Djoko, some of which are legally owned by Dipta.

The three other suspects in the case are former corps deputy chief Brig. Gen. Didik Purnomo, PT Citra Mandiri Metalindo Abadi (CMMA) owner Budi Susanto, and Sukotjo S. Bambang, the director of PT CMMA’s subcontractor PT Inovasi Teknologi Indonesia.

The tender of the project drew bids from five companies. Among them were PT Digo Mitra Slogan and PT Kolam Intan Prima, which are allegedly controlled by former Democratic Party treasurer Nazaruddin. PT CMMA won the project.