G

olkar Party chairman Setya Novanto may find his attempt to challenge the Corruption Eradication Commission’s (KPK) decision to rename him as a suspect in the e-ID graft case futile after the Jakarta Corruption Court announced on Thursday that he would be indicted next week.

The court has scheduled the embattled House Speaker’s e-ID graft trial for next Wednesday, likely invalidating his ongoing pretrial motion at the South Jakarta District Court.

“[The trial] has been set for next Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2017,” court spokesman Ibnu Basuki told reporters on Thursday.

The trial date brings the KPK another step closer to finally prosecuting Setya who has so far evaded prosecution despite his alleged involvement in several past graft cases.

His pretrial hearing at the South Jakarta District Court commenced on Thursday, but the trial date may render his motion legally void.

According to the Criminal Procedures Code (KUHAP), a formal accusation lodged against a suspect in court, or an indictment, will invalidate any legal attempts to overturn the suspect’s status.

At Thursday’s hearing, the case’s sole judge, Kusno, said it usually took him six to seven days to rule on a pretrial motion. This means the court will issue the ruling a day or two after the Jakarta Corruption Court hears the indictment against Setya.

“I plan to hand down the ruling next Thursday evening, or Friday at the latest, like I usually do for pretrial hearings,” he said. “So no one can say that I tried to speed things up or slow things down.”

One member of Setya’s legal team asked if they could present all of their witnesses on Friday, so that the judge could make a ruling as early as next Wednesday.

The judge refused, saying, “This is already a very fast process. If I go any faster then people will say I have a hidden motive.”

During the hearing, Setya’s legal team said the KPK’s decision to name their client as a suspect was “hasty, unprofessional and not in accordance with the law.”

The team refused to comment on the possibility of the motion being invalidated.

“We don’t want to talk about what ifs,” one of Setya’s lawyers, Ketut Mulya Arsana, said after the hearing. “We just want to finish the pretrial hearing properly and as soon as possible.”

University of Indonesia criminal law expert Ganjar Bondan said that if the main trial went forward as scheduled then it was almost certain that the pretrial hearing would be voided. “The first hearing in a trial almost always includes the reading of the indictment.”

He acknowledged that indictments in criminal cases were occasionally postponed, but usually at the request of the prosecution.

“In this case, the only reason to postpone the indictment would be if the defendant was sick,” he said. “But since the KPK has Setya in custody, it’s very unlikely that he will not attend the trial.”

Indonesia Corruption Watch activist Lalola Ester was less confident. “The first hearing might not necessarily include the indictment,” she said, citing the irregularities in previous cases involving Setya. “The KPK should really prepare an alternative strategy in case the pretrial hearing continues.”

The House of Representatives’ Ethics Council has hinted it would likely find Setya guilty of an ethics violation. “Based on the information we have received, a few things point toward [an ethics violation],” said vice chairperson Sarifuddin Sudding. (kmt)