April 26, 2016 edition
THIRTY Islamic scholars crowded into the front room of former Deputy Minister of Defense Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin's residence in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, on Friday three weeks ago. His guests included K.H. Abdul Rashid Abdullah Shafi, leader of the As-Syafi'iyah Islamic Studies Center; the former chair of the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) Jakarta Regional Advisory Board, K.H. Maulana Kamal Yusuf; as well as the head of Husnayain Islamic Boarding School, K.H. A. Cholil Ridwan. Also present were Head of the Crescent Star Party's (PBB) Advisory Board M. S. Kaban; one-time Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) advisor Abdullah Hehamahua; and KPK's former Deputy Chief Chandra M. Hamzah.
The men sat in a circle sampling fresh fruits and sipping on mineral water. The conversation centered on the theme of nostalgia, with scholars reminiscing about their time with Sjafrie when he was Jayakarta Military Command chief from 1997 to 1998. For three hours, they took turns expressing grievances about the problems facing Jakarta.
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April 19, 2016 edition
THE 10 Indonesians kidnapped by the Abu Sayyaf terrorist group have yet to be released nearly a month since their capture. As of last Friday, the hostages were still hidden in the southern Philippines, with the armed group demanding a 50 million peso ransom, about Rp15 billion. Cabinet Secretary Pramono Agung said the government had decided to negotiate for their releasea resolution through 'soft diplomacy', as he put it.
The 10 hostages were taken from the Brahma 12 tugboat and the Anand 12 barge, on which all worked as crew members. They were intercepted in Tambulian waters near Tapul Island, an area close to the Indonesian-Filipino border and near Malaysian territorial waters.
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April 12, 2016 edition
TO be honest, I still love all party members," Fahri Hamzah wrote in a brief message to a WhatsApp group called 'Info PKS' last Wednesday.
The group consists of top party officials, most of whomlike Refrizal, Tubagus Soenmandjaja and Hidayat Nur Wahidare sitting members in the House of Representatives (DPR). In response, several in the group sent Fahri emojis like raised thumbs and hearts. Others sent Arabic prayers.
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April 5, 2016 edition
The town of Tarakan in North Kalimantan was abuzz over the arrival of two military aircrafta Hercules C-130 and a CN-235at Juwata airfield in Ampana, Central Sulawesi, on Tuesday last week.
Juwata authorities said little about the new aircraft, with Tarakan airport chief Syamsul Bandri saying only that he had been asked to provide 'parking space' for the TNI aircraft.
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March 29, 2016 edition
THE one-stop 'aspiration market' goes through me, so tell the others," was a message sent by head of the National Highway Construction Center (BPJN) IX of Maluku and North Maluku, Amran Mustary, to potential contractors.
This was the statement made according to Windu Tunggal Utama CEO, Abdul Khoir, who has been interrogated five times by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) in recent weeks for allegedly bribing Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) politician Damayanti Wisnu Putranti.
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March 22, 2016 edition
A photo of a small house is posted on the ministry of villages, disadvantaged regions and transmigration electronic procurement system website. According to the site, the house, located at Dusun Ponokawan RT 2 RW 01, Sidoarjo, East Java, is the headquarters of Indo Teknika Sarana Pratama, a company that won a ship procurement tender worth Rp10 billion from the villages ministry last year.
On Thursday last week, Tempo visited the address. A notice was posted on the window informing that Indo Teknika had moved to Jalan Situs Raos, Gempol, Pasuruan, East Java. Mas'amah, the owner of the house, declined to comment on his relationship to the company. "Please ask about it over there," he said, providing the address of the Indo Teknika office in Pasuruan.
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March 8, 2016 edition