Boediono Refuses To Attend Hearing On Bank Century Scandal

Jakarta, Feb 19 (Antara) - Vice President Boediono has refused to attend a hearing with the House of Representatives` (DPR) team supervising the revelation of Bank Century bailout scandal on Wednesday, the Vice President`s spokesman Yopie Hidayat stated. Boediono`s stance remained unchanged due to the fact that the DPR had completed the political process of the case and the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) was working on it, he stated, as quoted by Kompas daily on Wednesday. Boediono was summoned by the House`s monitoring team, in his capacity as the former Bank Indonesia governor. Yopie added that Boediono respected the House and the duties of members of parliament, but he also respected the recommendations of the DPR`s plenary session on its special inquiry into the Bank Century bailout, saying that this case was handled by law enforcers. Sarifuddin Sudding, one of the supervising team members, had earlier stated that Boediono`s presence was important to clarify his statement that it was the Insurance Deposit Agency (LPS), which was responsible for giving Bank Century the bailout funds totaling to Rp6.76 trillion. "May Boediono be able to show his statesmanship by respecting our invitation. As a top state official, he must be able to set a good example to the people," Sudding, chairman of the People`s Conscience Party`s (Hanura) faction at the Indonesian parliament, remarked on Tuesday. Sudding argued that the DPR team members were seeking clarification on the statement because the 2004 LPS Law revealed that it was the president who should be held accountable. In response to the supervising team`s move, House Speaker Marzuki Alie showed his disagreement by saying that summoning Boediono was an act of political arrogance. He claimed that the move is bound to damage the country`s democracy and law. "Our democracy is damaged because political nuances of this move are more dominant and is disrespectful of our law," Marzuki Ali stated.