TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama, the suspect of the religious blasphemy case, extended an apology to Indonesia Ulema Council chairman Ma'ruf Amin and would drop his plan to file a police report against Ma'ruf.
"I apologize to Ma'ruf Amin if I insulted him," Ahok said in a press release on Wednesday, February 1, 2017, adding that he respected Ma'ruf as Nahdlatul Ulama's (NU) important figure.
During a trial on Tuesday, January 31, 2017, Ahok announced that he would report Ma'ruf to police as, in Ahok's opinion, there were irregularities found in Ma'ruf's testimonial. Ahok also questioned Ma'ruf's objectivity and alleged that Ma'ruf is affiliated with one of his political rivals in the 2017 Jakarta Gubernatorial Election.
Ahok's lawyer team asked Ma'ruf about his relationship with former President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY). They also asked about the meeting between Ma'ruf and SBY's son Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono held at the Nahdlatul Ulama Executive Board's (PBNU) office on October 7, 2016. Ma’ruf did not deny the meeting, but he dismissed the allegation that he supported Agus.
Ahok's lawyer team also asked about a conversation between Ma’ruf and SBY a day before the meeting. Humprey Djemat, one of Ahok's lawyers, asked Ma'ruf to explain about a request from SBY to accept Agus' visit and issue a fatwa on religious blasphemy. However, Ma’ruf dismissed that he had such a conversation.
Ahok said that the information regarding the telephone conversation was collected by his lawyer team. Ahok admitted that he was presented with an article published by Liputan6.com on October 7, 2016, reporting about the conversation between SBY and Ma'ruf.
VINDRY FLORENTIN | FRISKI RIANA
