Bang Ali backs city on Hilton issue<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Former governor Ali Sadikin insisted on Tuesday
\nthat the land occupied by the Jakarta Hilton International in the
\nexclusive Senayan area in South Jakarta belonged to the state.<\/p>\n
The hotel's 13-hectare plot should therefore be managed by the
\ncity administration, he said.<\/p>\n
\"I took over (appropriation of) the land at that time. It
\nshould be returned to the city,\" Ali said after meeting with
\nGovernor Sutiyoso.<\/p>\n
During his tenure as Jakarta governor in 1971, Ali said he
\nsigned an agreement with PT Patra Jasa, a subsidiary of state-
\nowned oil and mining company Pertamina, to build a hotel and a
\nconvention hall on the state land.<\/p>\n
The land-use permit for the project was valid for 20 years, he
\nadded.<\/p>\n
\"I don't know how and who then extended the period for another
\n10 years until 2001,\" Ali said.<\/p>\n
The hotel and the convention hall were initially built to
\naccommodate participants in the Asia Pacific Tourism Conference
\nat the time, he said.<\/p>\n
Ali claimed he was shocked and disappointed when he discovered
\nthe hotel was owned by PT Indobuildco, a private firm belonging
\nto the family of former Pertamina president Ibnu Sutowo.<\/p>\n
\"I thought that the hotel and convention center would belong
\nto the state since they were built by Pertamina,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Hilton public relations manager Dewi Widiyanti could not be
\nreached for comment on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Ali expressed disappointment that Senayan, a designated green-
\nbelt area, was now a \"forest\" of skyscrapers.<\/p>\n
\"It's against the spirit of (former president) Soekarno,\" he
\nadded.<\/p>\n
The Gelora Senayan Management Board has denied the plot
\nbelongs to the city, saying it came under its management in 1984.
\n(jun)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/bang-ali-backs-city-on-hilton-issue-1447893297",
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