Disbelief as ‘most wanted’ Indonesia politician hospitalized
Indonesians were hardly surprised that their
Images swept across social media Thursday night showing a black SUV with a dented grill resting against a power pole, and Novanto apparently unconscious in a hospital bed with a bandage on his head.
Some aren't buying it, calling the crash Novanto's most outrageous move yet to stymie the investigation and comparing it to a plot twist in one of the homegrown TV melodramas that regularly captivate millions.
Novanto, once hailed by Trump as one of
In recent weeks he'd been unable to respond to summons for questioning, citing a variety of health problems that required hospital treatment, though earlier this month had apparently gathered enough strength to be a guest at the wedding of the daughter of
"Setya Novanto and his team of lawyers must think we Indonesians are all fools," said
A day later Novanto was being driven to an appointment in
Novanto's lawyer, Fredrich Yunadi, said the politician was sitting in the back of the car and the driver was turning his head to talk to Novanto when he drove into the power pole. The driver, a reporter from a local TV station, only suffered light injuries but Novanto, who wasn't wearing a seatbelt, was "badly injured" with symptoms of a concussion, according to Yunadi.
Officials from the anti-corruption commission have been at the hospital since Thursday night, Yunadi said.
"I and hospital officials have told them that such a situation was not good for other patients, but they did not care," he said.
Mocking memes on social media using a hashtag that translates as "Save the power pole" quickly went viral.
Some predicted that the next twist in the drama would be Novanto claiming to have lost his memory and therefore unable to answer any questions about the corruption scandal.
"Sit back and grab your popcorn, this ain't over yet," said human rights lawyer
Anti-corruption police allege that Novanto was among about 80 people, mostly officials and legislators, and several companies used the introduction of a
Novanto, also chairman of the Golkar party, which is part of
A Trump admirer, Novanto made an unexpected appearance at the future president's news conference at
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