Accounting firms told to revise audit reports on SOEs<\/p>\n
Fitri Wulandari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) has asked several public
\naccounting firms to revise their audit reports on 34 state-owned
\nenterprises (SOEs) as they did not meet generally accepted
\naccounting standards, a senior government official said.<\/p>\n
\"The BPK has asked the accounting firms to revise their
\nreports,\" Mirza Mochtar, director of accounting and appraisal
\nservices at the Ministry of Finance, told The Jakarta Post on
\nTuesday.<\/p>\n
Whether or not the accounting firms in question would be
\nsanctioned would depend on an investigation to be carried out by
\nthe BPK and the Office of the State Minister for State
\nEnterprise, he said.<\/p>\n
Mirza added that he had held talks with the Indonesian
\nAccountants' Association (IAI) about the problem.<\/p>\n
\"The IAI said that the firms are willing to revise their
\nreports,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Zaenal Soedjais, the chairperson of the IAI promised to take
\nfirm action against any of its members who colluded with SOE
\ndirectors to cook their audit reports, as quoted by Koran Tempo.<\/p>\n
Both officials declined to disclose the names of the
\naccounting firms, but Zaenal acknowledged that they included the
\nlocal units of the world's Big Five.<\/p>\n
The BPK has demanded revisions of the audit reports as they
\ndid not include compliance reviews as required under the
\nprevailing regulations.<\/p>\n
Reports had earlier said that the auditors did not include the
\ncompliance review aspect in their audits as it was a relatively
\nnew requirement that was only introduced last year.<\/p>\n
Experts have said that revising the audit reports by inserting
\ncompliance reviews could lead to a change in the auditor's
\nopinions given for certain SOEs.<\/p>\n
The 34 SOEs whose audit reports did not meet accounting
\nstandards include trainmaker PT INKA, postal service PT Pos
\nIndonesia, insurance companies PT Jamsostek and PT Jasa Raharja,
\nand banknote and security paper company Perum Peruri.<\/p>\n
This latest development in the accounting field at home comes
\namid a string of major accounting scandals in the U.S.<\/p>\n
Alleged accounting scams also emerged here during the late
\n1990s.<\/p>\n
Ten firms had audited 37 banks before the 1997 financial
\ncrisis. The audit results revealed that the financial
\nperformances of the banks were sound.<\/p>\n
As the financial crisis struck the country, the banks
\ncollapsed like a house of cards due to mismanagement.<\/p>\n
Later, a government investigation slammed the accounting firms
\ninvolved.<\/p>\n
Ironically though, most of the firms involved in these cases
\nwent unpunished.<\/p>\n
Mirza said that the government was currently revising two
\nfinance minister decrees on the accountancy profession in a bid
\nto put stricter sanctions in place.<\/p>\n
\"We are aware of the weaknesses in the system, but we're
\ntrying to fix them,\" he said.<\/p>\n
In the revised decrees, he said, public accountants would risk
\nhaving their licenses revoked without prior warning if they were
\nguilty of significant violations of accounting standards.<\/p>\n
SOEs facing accounting woes: (1) PT Pupuk Sriwidjaja,
\n(2) PT Iglass, (3) PT Semen Baturaja, (4) PT Industri Kereta
\nApi (INKA), (5) PT LEN Industri, (6) PT Pupuk Kujang, (7)
\nPT Rekayasa Industri, (8) PT Krakatau Engineering, (9)
\nPT Kawasan Industri Cilegon, (10) PT Perkebunan Nusantara VIII,
\n(11) PT Perkebunan Nusantara IX, (12) PT Perkebunan Nusantara X,
\n(13) Perum Sang Hyang Sri, (14) PT Taman Wisata Candi Borobudur,
\nPrambanan, Ratu Boko, (15) PT Pos Indonesia, (16) PT Perhotelan
\ndan Perkantoran Indonesia, (17) Perum Jasa Tirta, (18) PT Amarta
\nKarya, (19) PT Adhi Karya, (20) PT Virama Karya, (21) PT Wijaya
\nKarya, (22) PT Bank Ekspor Indonesia, (23) PT Bank Mandiri, (24)
\nPT Asuransi Kredit Indonesia, (25) PT Asuransi Jasa Indonesia,
\n(26) PT Jasa Raharja, (27) PT Asuransi Ekspor Indonesia, (28) PT
\nBatam, (29) PT Kawasan Berikat Nusantara, (30) Perum Peruri,
\n(31) Perum Pegadaian, (32) PT SIER, (33) PT Jamsostek, (34) PT
\nPermodalan Nasional Madani.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/accounting-firms-told-to-revise-audit-reports-on-soes-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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