T

he move by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to detain senior lawyer OC Kaligis just hours after naming him a suspect in a bribery case on Tuesday, has apparently influenced North Sumatra Governor Gatot Pujo Nugroho'€™s decision to soften his stance toward the antigraft body.

After disappearing from public view for several days and refusing to answer a KPK letter of summons, the governor appeared before the media on Wednesday.

Gatot told journalists in Medan that he would cooperate with the KPK and would go to its office for questioning as a witness next Wednesday.

'€œI will attend for questioning,'€ said the governor.

Speculation is rife that the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) politician may soon follow Kaligis in being named a suspect in the case after the KPK slapped him with a travel ban on Monday.

Gatot however maintained he should not be blamed for his failure to attend for the initial questioning as he did not receive any summons letter from the KPK prior to the scheduled interrogation. He added that he had informed the KPK by fax that he would attend the questioning on July 22.

 '€œI just came back to Medan on Saturday and I did not know that I had been summonsed by the KPK. I was also not around on Friday and Saturday anyway. I sent the fax on Monday,'€ Gatot added.

 Gatot declined to comment on the KPK'€™s move to also ban a woman identified as Evy Susanti from traveling. The lady in question is reportedly Gatot'€™s second wife. In addition to Evy, the KPK also issued travel bans for three other individuals in the case.

'€œLet'€™s just focus on the legal case,'€ the governor insisted.

Gatot'€™s father has reportedly confirmed Evy'€™s status as his daughter-in-law.

Separately, KPK chairman Taufiequrachman Ruki told reporters that investigators were currently closely examining the role of the governor in the case in a move to confirm the '€œsource'€ of the bribe money.

'€œThe result of his questioning will determine whether he is involved in the case. We need to also collect statements from witnesses and examine the confiscated evidence before coming to a conclusion,'€ Ruki said.

Meanwhile, Kaligis, who is known for his frequent abrasive statements about the KPK, has announced he has given up his position on the board of executives of the NasDem Party executive board, a party in the government coalition, as a result of his graft suspect status, but he will remain as a party member.

Kaligis'€™ arrest came just days after KPK investigators apprehended three judges, namely Medan State Administrative Court (PTUN) head Tripeni Irianto Putro, and Amir Fauzi and Dermawan Ginting, during a sting operation on Thursday in Medan for allegedly accepting US$20,000 in bribes from Kaligis'€™ aide Yagari '€œGerry'€ Bhastara Guntur.

Gerry had provided legal assistance to an official from the North Sumatra provincial administration who had successfully filed a legal challenge in the court.

Kaligis has maintained his innocence in the bribery case claiming that he knew nothing about the bribery scheme. He has also declined to say whether it was Gatot who provided the bribed money. He has accused PTUN Medan clerk Syamsir Yusfan, also named a suspect in the case, of being the individual who actively sought money from Gerry.

'€œThe clerk always called to ask where the '€˜holiday bonus'€™ was. I never allowed him [Gerry] to comply with the request. It was his [Gerry'€™s] initiative [to bribe the judges],'€ Kaligis said, adding that he never instructed his subordinates to remove evidence in the case.