Alleged middleman Luthfi Hasan Ishaaq says he did not ask the Agriculture Ministry to raise the import beef quota for a firm that paid him Rp 1.3 billion (US$133,745), his lawyer has said.

Zainuddin Paru, the lawyer for Luthfi, said that his client, who is the former chairman of the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), never promised PT Indoguna Utama to use his influnce with Agriculture Minister Suswono, another PKS member.

'There was never a promise,' Zainuddin said before Luthfi was questioned at KPK headquarters on Friday. 'Luthfi has never tried to persuade Agriculture Minister Suswono. He never tried to do such a thing because his capacity as the party's chairman at that time was different from the minister's.'

Luthfi's role in the case was revealed during the first trial session of PT Indoguna Utama officials Juard Effendi and Arya Abdi Effendi for allegedly bribing Luthfi.

Prosecutors said that Luthfi played an important part in the scandal, arranging a meeting between Indoguna president director Maria Elizabeth Liman and Suswono during a PKS campaign event in Luthfi's room at the Aryaduta Hotel in Medan, North Sumatra, in January to lobby Suswono to help Indoguna.

While Zainuddin confirmed that the meeting took place, he denied that it was held to persuade Suswono to increase Indoguna's quota.

According to the lawyer, Luthfi initiated the meeting, as he was worried about the widespread use of pork and rat meat, neither of which may be consumed by Muslims, as illicit substitutes for beef amid rising prices due to the import caps.

'Suswono is a member of PKS, which is an Islamic party, but the public has been served with non-halal meat,' Zainuddin said. 'Based on that, Luthfi asked the minister what was going on. At the same time, Indoguna said that there was [an official] mistake, which Luthfi tried to pass on to Suswono.'

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