BI Governor Denies Meeting with Anas

Jakarta (Antara) - Bank Indonesia (BI) Governor Agus Martowardojo denied a statement by former Democratic Party treasurer and graft convict Muhammad Nazaruddin that he had lunch with the party's former chairman Anas Urbaningrum to discuss the Hambalang project. "I want to clarify that the statement by Nazaruddin is totally wrong," Agus stated during a discussion with the media here on Friday. Agus explained that he was concerned about the statement and accused Nazaruddin of sowing slanders. He pointed out that Nazaruddin should not have given false testimonies before the court. "In fact, he was sworn in before giving his testimonies," he retorted. Agus explained that he never had lunch with Anas who had been named as a suspect in the graft-tainted Hambalang sports center construction project. He also confirmed that he did not know the president director of PT Dutasari Citralaras, Mahfud Suroso, who had also been named as a suspect in the case. "So Nazar has lied as I never had lunch with Anas and have never been acquainted with Mahfud Suroso," he remarked. The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) detained Anas on January 10 after several hours of interrogation in connection with his alleged involvement in a corruption case. The anti-graft body conducted the interrogation after the former chairman of the ruling Democratic Party was subpoenaed for the third time. Anas failed to meet the first two summons on July 31, 2013 and January 7. On February 22 last year, the KPK named Anas as a suspect for allegedly accepting a bribe during the construction of the Hambalang Sports Center in West Java. However, Anas has not yet been taken into custody. In the Hambalang case, the KPK has named three suspects, including the former sports and youth affairs minister Andi Mallarangeng in his capacity as the user of the funds, former planning bureau chief of the ministry of youth and sports affairs Deddy Kusdinar, who was the planning officer during the implementation of the Hambalang project, and former operations director 1 of PT Adhi Karya Teuku Bagus Mukhamad Noor. (*)