SBY 'Shocked,' First Lady in Tears Over Wikileaks Allegations

SBY PRESIDENCY

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was said to have been shocked and unhappy, and the first lady, Ani Yudhoyono, in tears, following the publication of an article in The Age newspaper today accusing them of abusing their power.

The article titled “Yudhoyono ‘Abused Power,’” which outlines a number of startling allegations against the president and other government officials, cites US embassy cables from Jakarta distributed by Wikileaks as its sole source.

“The president was very shocked and did not expect it,” presidential spokesman Julian Pasha said. “Moreover, the article is not true, inaccurate and recklessly written. I don’t know, they probably just picked these up somewhere and it turned out to be like this.”

The article, also published by the online news portal Asia Sentinel, also wrote that: “Yudhoyono’s wife and relatives also feature prominently in the US embassy’s political reporting, with American diplomats highlighting the efforts of the president’s family “particularly first lady Kristiani Herawati ...to profit financially from its political position.”

“Honestly, the first lady cried,” Sudi Silalahi, State Secretary, said at the president palace. “She was really shocked because none of the allegations are true.”

The article stated that in June 2006, one presidential staff member told US embassy officers that Kristiani’s family members were “specifically targeting financial opportunities related to state-owned enterprises.”

“The well-connected staffer portrayed the President as ‘witting of these efforts, which his closest operators (e.g. Sudi Silalahi) would advance, while Yudhoyono himself maintained sufficient distance that he could not be implicated.’"

Sudi, who likewise denied allegations made against him in the article, said the activities of the first lady are transparent, focusing mainly on education, environment and other social welfare events.

Yudhoyono did not join Friday prayers at the palace. “He is not feeling well,” Sudi said. “He had been very busy this week.”

Daniel Sparingga, a presidential advisor, said the palace would exert all efforts needed to straighten out the truth that he claimed has been twisted by the media.

“The public has the right to get the real news, instead of getting this ‘Thousand and One Nights’ tale,” Daniel said. “We feel sorry for The Age’s recklessness and consider it to be embarrassingly scandalous news that the article’s sources could not be validated as they hide behind their controversial secrecy. We are concerned but also upset with the Age for going against the universal journalistic code of conduct.”

Daniel also advised TB Silalahi, a former presidential advisor who is mentioned several times in The Age article as one of the US embassy’s most valued political informants, to clarify to the public his position regarding the article.

Julian said the government would announce its official response to the article soon. “But we haven’t decided which option to use,” he said.

But Julian maintained that Wikileaks was not credible nor legally valid as a news source.

Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com

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