State Palace Says ‘Obor Rakyat’ Not Connected to SBY

Police are positioned outside the State Palace on Feb. 5, 2014. The State Palace denies any connection between President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and a tabloid that published libelous content against presidential candidate Joko Widodo. (JG Photo/Afriadi Hikmal)

Jakarta. The State Palace has denied any connection between President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and “Obor Rakyat,” a tabloid that published libelous content against presidential candidate Joko Widodo and of which its editor in chief is said to be an assistant to one of Yudhoyono’s special staff.

Yudhoyono’s spokesman Julian Aldrin Pasha said the special staff to the president and their assistants are placed under Cabinet Secretary Dipo Alam.

Setiyardi Budiono, editor in chief of “Obor Rakyat,” is said to be an assistant to Velix Wanggai, Yudhoyono’s special staff for regional development and regional autonomy.

“The president does not know anything and has no connections with the ‘Obor Rakyat’ tabloid. Let the police investigate it thoroughly to know who is behind the publication,” Julian told reporters on Tuesday. “We have no business with Setiyardi Budiono. We’re giving the investigation of the case to the police.”

The tabloid has managed to make a name for itself in the weeks leading up to the July 9 presidential election for publishing false statements against Joko. In one of its articles, the publication said Joko, a Muslim, was instead a Chinese Christian.

It is distributed for free in Islamic boarding schools in Central and East Java.

Joko’s campaign team has reported the tabloid to the National Police for libel, while Setiyardi himself insisted that the tabloid was a form of protest against Joko, who is running for president and has temporarily stepped down as governor of Jakarta.

Police claimed they are still investigating and have not yet named any suspects.

Com. Gen. Suhardi Alius, chief of the National Police’s criminal investigation division (Bareskrim), said his department was still looking into the best angle at which to approach the case and that four experts will serve as witnesses in the case.

“There are four experts we need as witnesses — a language expert, [a representative from] the Press Council, [another from] the Ministry of Information and Technology and a non-partisan legal expert,” he said.
“We have summoned them, but only the Press Council [representative] came,” Suhardi said on Tuesday, adding that the witness was questioned on Friday and will face additional questioning on Wednesday.
“So there is no decision yet. Hopefully we have a proper legal standing and not just one evidence,” he said.

According to Suhardi, the tabloid can be charged with violation of at least three laws for libel, namely the Presidential Election Law, the Press Law and the General Crime Law.

He emphasized that it was impossible for police officials to take legal steps based on a person’s opinion and therefore cooperation with other related entities such as the Attorney General’s Office was necessary.

By ID/Novy Lumanauw & Farouk Arnaz on 05:02 pm Jul 01, 2014