Court to begin pretrial of house speaker`s case

The South Jakarta district court is scheduled to begin the pretrial session of House Speaker Setya Novanto as suspect in a corruption case on Thursday.

The pretrial court will determine whether the country`s anti-graft agency KPK was right in deciding to name the speaker as a suspect.

This is the second pretrial session in the same case after the one earlier one was won by Novanto.

KPK has expressed its readiness regarding the session. "Certainly, we have been 100 percent ready. Do not worry," KPK deputy chairman Basaria Pandjaitan said here on Wednesday.

She added that KPK had not prepared any special strategy to deal with the pretrial, which was demanded by Novanto.

"There is no need to make strategies. It is his right to defend himself. So, we also will not be afraid to meet the procedures" she said.

She said KPK would strive to prove that its decision to rename Novanto as a corruption suspect had been taken according to procedures.

"Demanding a pretrial is the right of the person concerned. We must also honor the principle of presumption of innocence. KPK, on the other hand, will also prove what it has done is right," she remarked.

KPK spokesman Febri Diansyah said a team from the Legal Bureau has been assigned to attend the pretrial.

"The Legal Bureau has been assigned for it. Of course, they will come. Let us just see tomorrow. at the South Jakarta court," he explained.

Novanto has been renamed suspect in connection with a corruption case in the electronic identity card procurement project of the ministry of home affairs.

As a parliament member in the period of 2009-2014, Novanto, along with Anang Sugiana Sudihardjono, a company director; Andi Agustinus alias Andi Narogong, a businessman; Iram, the director general of population affairs and civil registry; and Sugiharto, the official charged of making commitment to the directorate general of population affairs and civil registry, and others have been charged of benefiting themselves or others or corporations by abusing their authority and facilities vested on them because of their positions to cause a loss of Rp2.3 trillion out of the Rp5.9 trillion worth of the project to the state

Source: ANTARA