Liem Soei Liong: ‘Penjaga Telur Emas’ Bagi Kekuasaan Jenderal Soeharto (2)

In Historia, Politik, Sosial on June 13, 2012 at 1:01 AM
BUKANNYA tak pernah muncul nama-nama sebagai calon ‘rival’ menuju kursi RI-1, namun semua selalu kandas dengan sendirinya melalui ‘ketegangan kreatif’ itu. Mulai dari Jenderal Ali Moertopo, Jenderal Soemitro sampai Jenderal Muhammad Jusuf. Sebenarnya di luar mereka dan di luar Jenderal AH Nasution –yang menjadi rival pertama dalam persaingan menuju kursi RI-1 menggantikan Soekarno– masih cukup banyak tokoh, terutama para jenderal, yang memendam keinginan menjadi number one. Tetapi para jenderal yang disebutkan terakhir ini, terlalu besar ketergantungan mati-hidupnya dari Soeharto, sehingga tak lebih tak kurang mereka hanya berani berada dalam penantian mendadak ketiban ‘wasiat’ Soeharto untuk naik ke kursi nomor satu itu. Ketergantungan mereka pada umumnya menyangkut karir, fasilitas dan akses keuangan. Rata-rata, untuk akses keuangan, mereka berhubungan ‘baik’ dengan Liem Soei Liong sang penjaga ayam petelur dan telur-telur emasnya.

LIEM SOEI LIONG – SOEHARTO. Siapa berani memerahi Liem Soei Liong? (foto download suara pengusaha)

The War & Peace Show

UNTIL 7.30am on D-Day, Vic Longhurst (left),  who now lives at Orpington, Kent, had never been in action. Not yet 18, he had never really been to sea, until the Landing Craft Tank, on which he served, headed off across the Channel towards Juno Beach.
As the door went down and the vessel's cargo of tanks and Canadian infantrymen streamed ashore, all hell had broken loose.
Although he was a signalman, Vic was helping out on one of the landing craft's guns as they approached the beach.
"I noticed there was no No.2 on the gun, which made it difficult for the gunner to reload," he said. "When I reported that to the FO he said: ‘Well go down and do your best for me.'
"Heavy machine gun fire was being aimed at the bridge and the gun was alongside the bridge. I was behind the gun shield, but bullets were hitting the wheelhouse and ricocheting back. I got wounded in the right arm and a number of other places.
"The Coxswain inside the wheelhouse was killed instantly by a bullet through his head.
"On the way in we had hit a mine. I didn't know this at the time. It meant they couldn't lower the door in the normal way and had to let it down by hand."
Vic went back up to the wheelhouse and stood astride the coxswain's body to replace him at the wheel, as the craft backed off the beach.
On the day before D-Day he very nearly missed the boat altogether. As signalman he was sent from Southampton, where they were moored waiting to cross, to pick up some important messages. It was pouring with rain when he arrived back, and the LCT was no longer at its mooring.
The vessel had gone for some last minute repairs, and Vic had a long walk in pouring rain to find it.
"I was soaking wet and I'd had no food all day," he said. "The old man told me to go below and get some dry clothes but as I reached the hatchway, the vessel's intercom sounded ‘action stations', so I had to return to the bridge".
All the way across he was relaying messages by Aldis lamp, but only in the direction of the English coast, so the light would not be seen by the enemy. The messages went from ship to ship, but there was no way signallers in the leading ships could know if their messages had been picked up by vessels further back.
After the landing, and once the craft was out of harm's way, Vic was taken off to a Liberty ship to have his wounds dressed. He remembers feeling upset because regulations stipulated that the coxswain had to be buried at sea. "It would have been no problem to take him back to England for a proper burial," he said.
After recovering in hospital and being moved from one unit to another, Vic shipped to the Far East and helped with mopping up operations after the Japanese capitulated. On his return he toyed with the idea of signing on to continue his career with the Navy. Instead he demobbed, and found work in the building trade.
 

Selisih Harga Pembelian Sukhoi Melebihi US$ 470 Juta

Mataharinews.com, Jakarta - Pembelian enam pesawat Sukhoi SU-30MK2 dari Rusia oleh Kementerian Pertahanan (Kemhan) diduga terdapat mark up dalam proses pembeliannya. Hal ini disampaikan oleh Indonesian Corruption Watch (ICW) dan Imparsial kepada anggota Komisi I DPR Tubagus Hasanuddin, Kamis (15/03/2012).

Menurut Wakil Koordinator ICW, Adnan Topan Husodo, pembelian pesawat tersebut tidak dilakukan secara langsung ke Produsen Sukhoi, Rosoboronexport, melainkan melaui calo sehingga selisih harga dari keenam pesawat tersebut sebesar 56,7 juta dolar atau Rp 538,6 miliar.

Direktur Program Imparsial Al Araf, juga mempertanyakan selisih harga pembelian Sukhoi yang mencapai 470 juta dolar AS hingga 500 juta dolar AS untuk enam buah pesawat. Sedangkan pada pengadaan tahun 2010, nilai pembelian Sukhoi dari produsen yang sama hanya berkisar 55 juta dolar AS,"Jika harga kesepakatan adalah 500 juta dolar AS untuk enam Sukhoi, ini artinya harga per satu Sukhoi adalah 83 juta dolar AS,"ucap Al Araf.

Sebelumnya, Indonesia telah memiliki 10 unit Sukhoi yang terdiri dari 2 unit jenis SU-27SK, 3 unit jenis SU-27SKM dan 2 unit jenis SU-30MK, 3 unit jenis SU-30MK2 seharga 470 juta dolar AS. Pengadaan Sukhoi di atas adalah bagian dari upaya modernisasi alutsista untuk periode 2010-2014 yang diperkirakan menelan anggaran hingga Rp 149,78 triliun.