Paras Indonesia, 02, 24 2006 @ 02:07 am
VP Gets Bomb Threat When Meeting Murderer's Brother
Posted by: Roy Tupai
The vice presidential office on Jalan Merdeka Selatan in Central Jakarta received a
bomb threat on Thursday (23/2/06) while Vice President Jusuf Kalla was in a meeting
with Pontjo Sutowo, the elder brother of convicted murderer Adiguna Sutowo.
"The office's telephone exchange operator received an anonymous call at 1.45pm from
a man who said the building would be blown up within an hour," presidential office
deputy administrator Hendri Sulistyo was quoted as saying by state news agency
Antara.
He said the operator reported the threatening call to his superior, Mujiono, who in turn
alerted the vice presidential guards. The guards searched the premises and all
vehicles in the car-park but found nothing suspicious.
"I think it was only a prank caller," Sulistyo was quoted as saying by detikcom online
news portal.
Vice Presidential secretary Gembong Prijono said he was unaware of the bomb threat
and thought the search by the guards was merely a routine procedure.
Pontjo arrived at the vice presidential office at 1.30pm for a 30-minute meeting with
Kalla. The two apparently discussed the upcoming Indonesian Tourism Trade Show
2006, of which Pontjo is chairman.
Pontjo's brother Adiguna was in June 2005 sentenced to only seven years in jail for
the January 1, 2005, murder of a waiter at Jakarta's Hilton Hotel.
Adiguna, a member of one of the country's most filthy rich and influential families, flew
into a rage and shot waiter Yohannes Berchmans Haerudy 'Rudy' Natong (25) in the
head from almost point-blank range after being informed his debit card could not be
used to settle a Rp150,000 ($16) bar tab. Police have said the tycoon was drunk at
the time of the shooting and also under the influence of shabu-shabu (crystal
methamphetamine) and cocaine. He was not charged with drug offenses.
Rudy, from a poor family on Flores island in East Nusa Tenggara province, had been
working part-time at the Hilton to support his law studies at Jakarta's Bung Karno
University.
Pontjo is the boss of the Jakarta Hilton and three other Hiltons in Indonesia. His
father, the late Ibnu Sutowo, was boss of state oil company Pertamina from 1968-76,
during which time his corrupt mismanagement virtually bankrupted the firm. Pontjo
had paid a bribe of an undisclosed sum of money to Rudy's father in effort to have the
murder charge against Adiguna dropped.
Lee & Suharto
Kalla on Wednesday met with visiting Singaporean Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew to
discuss regional economic and investment challenges.
The former Singaporean leader's also visited former dictator Suharto and ex-president
Megawati Sukarnoputri.
Lee's 35-minute closed-door meeting with Suharto took place at the latter's Jalan
Cendana residence in Central Jakarta. Suharto was accompanied by his daughters
Siti Hardiyanti 'Tutut' Rukmana and Siti Hediati 'Titiek' Prabowo.
Lee embraced and kissed Suharto after they met. Following their meeting, the old
friends walked arm-in-arm to the terrace. They waved and smiled to reporters but
refused to answer any questions. Suharto appeared sprightly and healthy.
Suharto was forced to resign in May 1998 amid mass riots, protests and economic
turmoil after 32 years of repressive military-backed rule. Efforts to prosecute him for
massive corruption have been half-hearted at best, with authorities deeming him too
mentally and physically feeble to be brought to trial. Despite his alleged brain
damage, Suharto has generally appeared alert and healthy in his rare public
appearances.
Lee concluded his four-day visit to Jakarta on Thursday. He had met with President
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono for several hours on Tuesday night for talks and a game
of chess at the state palace.
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