Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Former vice president Jusuf Kalla asked the 19 suspect politicians being held for alleged involvement in the traveler`s check corruption case to be honest when questioned by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).

"They, including a former minister, should be honest in revealing the sources from where they received the funds, because only by doing so the case could be disclosed," the vice president said when attending the closing of a symposium organized by the National Democrat here on Sunday.

He said they should expose the sources of the flow of funds allegedly transferred to legislators from Miranda Goeltom so that she could be elected as a Bank Indonesia (BI/the central bank) senior deputy governor in 2004.

Kalla said that the detention by the KPK of 19 politicians was based on appropriate legal process. For that, he called on other House of Representatives (DPR) members not to be prejudiced towards the KPK.

"All parties are expected to be fair in looking into the KPK move to detain 10 politicians. It should not happen that if the case concerns others we ask the KPK to handle it. But if it concerns us we ask that it should not be handled by KPK. We also ask the KPK not to be discriminatory in taking action," the former vice president said.

Kalla however added that "Both sides should be fair. KPK should not be discriminatory."

He said those who were believed to have been involved in the traveler`s check case but have not yet been arrested, had important positions.

Previously, KPK arrested 19 politicians who were members of Commission IX of the DPR for the 1999-2004 period. They were believed to have received bribes in the form of traveler`s checks for the election of Miranda Goeltom as a BI senior deputy governor.

Those arrested included Paskah Suzetta of the Golkar Party and Panda Nababan of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP).(*)

Editor: Ruslan Burhani
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