Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Luhut Pandjaitan and oil and gas businessman Muhammad Reza Chalid are due to attend a House of Representatives ethics council (MKD) hearing on Monday to clarify their alleged involvement in the Freeport Indonesia scandal, a lawmaker said.

Luhut, whose name is among those frequently mentioned in a taped conversation that allegedly reveals that House Speaker Setya Novanto attempted to benefit himself in negotiations over a renewed mining contract for Freeport, is scheduled to attend the hearing at 1 p.m., after Reza who was due to give testimony three hours earlier, a MKD deputy Junimart Girsang said last week.

Besides presenting Luhut, who is confirmed to attend, the MKD will examine the role Reza, who ignored the MKD'€™s call early this month, had in asking Freeport Indonesia president director Maroef Sjamsoeddin for shares in exchange for direct lobbying of President Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo to ask for the government'€™s approval of the company'€™s mining license extension.

'€œWe will do a forced-call if Reza keeps avoiding the summons,'€ Junimart told reporters.

Freeport Indonesia, the local unit of US mining giant Freeport-McMoRan, has been seeking approval from the government to continue operations at its gold mine in Papua, one of the world'€™s largest, past 2021, the year its current license will end.

Reza was heard in a recording proposing to Maroef that he give blocks of Freeport shares to Luhut and Vice President Jusuf Kalla to ensure Setya'€™s work would be successful.

The case came to light when Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said reported Setya to the ethics council, submitting the recording and transcripts of the conversation. The council heard testimony from Sudirman, Maroef and Setya, while Reza skipped his summons. (dan)(+)

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