Umar Arsal, a PD coordinator for the Sulawesi region, said the team set up to help Anas Urbaningrum win the party chairmanship election at the Bandung congress had only distributed "transport money" among the delegates as compensation for the airfare from their respective regions.
"The transport money was distributed twice, first Rp3.5 million and later Rp7.5 million per group. If there are now former delegates who claim to have received Rp25 million or up to Rp100 million, they are not telling the truth," Umar said in a statement at the parliament building here Friday.
Umar Arsal made the statement following a confession by Diana Maringka, a former member of the PD`s Boalemo district executive board, North Sulawesi, that she had received Rp100 million and 20,000 US dollars when attending the PD congress in Bandung in May 2010.
According to Umar who is chairman of the PD executive board`s emergency response department and a House Commission V member, the amounts given to Bandung congress delegates as transport money were not excessive as a plane ticket from Sulawesi to Jakarta cost Rp2 million.
About the reported distribution of blackberries among Bandung congress delegates, Umar said they were just "gifts" from the Anas Urbaningrum support team and not expensive.
The money to buy the blackberries had been raised by the team from among its members and contributors, Umar said without mentioning the amount.
Anas Urbaningrum became PD chairman at the Bandung congress where he defeated two competitors- Andi Mallarangeng and Marzuki Alie- in an election. Andi is youth and sports minister and Marzuki House of Representatives speaker. (*)
Editor: Kunto Wibisono
Copyright © ANTARA 2012
