REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- House Speaker Setya Novanto has no authority to extend the companys contract, PT Freeport Indonesias President Director Maroef Sjamsuddin stated here on Thursday.

"So, it was unethical and inappropriate for him to do it," he said while testifying at the House of Representatives Ethics Council (MKD) session.

Maroef explained that after the second meeting, his instinct told him that something unethical had been done by the house speaker with regard to his involvement in the contract extension of PT Freeport Indonesia.

Maroef admitted to have taken the initiative to use his cellphone to record the conversation with Novanto and businessman M. Reza Chalid during the third meeting.

"Based on the second meeting, I thought (I had to record it). No one ordered me to do it. I did it on my own (because) my integrity was at stake," he stated.

Maroef revealed that in the second meeting, he was surprised to find that Novanto was accompanied by Chalid whom he had not known before.

Read: BEI: Freeport shares can be restricted only for Indonesian investors

During the second meeting, he said that the smelter and contract extension had already been discussed.

"After the second meeting, I conducted a private analysis. I asked myself why the discussion veered from business to contract extension. Why it was done by the house speaker, and why he did not involve the members of the House Commission VII but only businessman Chalid," he pointed out.

Maroef admitted that after the second meeting, he received a text message from Chalid inviting him for another meeting and after crosschecking it with the staff member of Novanto, he confirmed that the invitation for the three to meet again was true.

"Finally, the meeting took place on July 8, 2015. The staff of the house speaker determined the location and time of the meeting," he noted.

Maroef said the recording he had submitted to Energy Minister Sudirman Said was exactly the same as the one heard at the MKD session on Wednesday.

The MKD heard Minister Saids explanation on Wednesday in connection with his complaint that Novanto had allegedly used the names of President Joko Widodo and Vice President Jusuf Kalla to get a stake in PT Freeport for his personal gains.

The gold and copper mining company PT Freeport Indonesia is expected to extend its contract for two years before it expires in 2021.

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