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House speaker urged to step down over Freeport scandal
Under pressure: House of Representatives speaker Setya Novanto is facing calls that he step down over an alleged ethics violation case
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Under pressure: House of Representatives speaker Setya Novanto is facing calls that he step down over an alleged ethics violation case. (Tempo/Dhemas Reviyanto Atmodjo) (Tempo/Dhemas Reviyanto Atmodjo)
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span class="inline inline-center">Under pressure: House of Representatives speaker Setya Novanto is facing calls that he step down over an alleged ethics violation case. (Tempo/Dhemas Reviyanto Atmodjo)
The Democratic Party has urged House of Representatives speaker Setya Novanto to step down over an alleged ethical violation, where the lawmaker is accused of misusing the names of President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo and Vice President Jusuf Kalla and attempting to trade government favors for shares in gold and copper miner PT Freeport Indonesia.
Democratic Party politician Ruhut Sitompul said that his party had always strived to create a balance and take sides with those on the right path.
'In this case, Setya is wrong,' Ruhut told journalists at the House complex in Senayan, Central Jakarta, on Tuesday.
He referred to a report filed by Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said with the House Ethics Council that included a recorded conversation between Setya, businessman Riza Chalid and Freeport president director Maroef Sjamsoeddin, discussing Freeport's contract extension. It is alleged that during the meeting, Setya asked for a 20 percent shareholding arrangement in the company and claimed he was doing so on behalf of Jokowi and Kalla.
Ruhut claimed he was 'the first' lawmaker who urged Setya to step down and that his move had nothing to do with his support for President Jokowi or Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan.
As reported earlier, Luhut was also mentioned in the recording, partially implicating him also. Ruhut said his appeal was purely to maintain the image of the House, of which Setya and himself are both members.
"He must preserve the good names of House members," he said.
As of Tuesday, the House Ethics Council had not yet scheduled a hearing for Setya's case, to follow up on the minister's report. The council held an internal meeting on Monday, but it failed to reach an agreement on the hearing of the Setya case due to several legal concerns.
New House Ethics Council deputy chief Abdul Kahar Muzakira, a Golkar Party politician, questioned Sudirman's filing of the report given his position as a minister (state official) as a House regulation stipulates that ethical violations can only be reported to the council by House leaders and members and the general public. (ebf)
