Pertamina case may lead to legislator's prosecution<\/p>\n
Fitri Wulandari, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Legislators receiving money from state oil and gas firm PT
\nPertamina for a recent overseas trip could face up to 20 years in
\nprison if they fail to explain the payouts to the government-
\nsanctioned anti-corruption commission (KPK) within a 30-day
\nperiod.<\/p>\n
KPK deputy head Erry Riyana Hardjapamekas said on Friday the
\nlawmakers had to prove the funds were not illegal gratuities from
\nPertamina.<\/p>\n
According to Law No. 20\/2001 on corruption, any form of
\ngratuity given to government employees or state officials is
\nconsidered a bribe if it is related to one's position and goes
\nagainst one's duties or obligations to the public.<\/p>\n
The law says those receiving gratuities worth Rp 10 million or
\nmore must be able to prove they are not bribes.<\/p>\n
\"If they fail to report (the money) within 30 days, they could
\nface a four to 20-year jail term,\" he told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
Erry made the comments amid the controversy surrounding the
\nsale of Pertamina's two giant oil tankers.<\/p>\n
More than a dozen legislators in the House of Representatives
\nCommission VIII on mining and energy recently made a trip to Hong
\nKong to meet representatives from Goldman Sachs, the consultant
\nfor the sale process. The group later traveled to South Korea to
\nmeet with Hyundai Heavy Industries, the manufacturer of the
\ntankers. The lawmakers, some accompanied by their wives, claimed
\nthe trip was crucial to obtain accurate information about the
\nsale before deciding whether to recommend or reject it.<\/p>\n
However, the Kompas newspaper then reported Pertamina had
\nfinanced the trip, raising suspicions it was a bribe to obtain
\nHouse approval for the sale of its two Very Large Crude Carriers
\n(VLCCs).<\/p>\n
At first, the legislators insisted the Rp 150 million trip was
\npaid for by the commission's budget. However, after media reports
\nrevealed a internal memo from Pertamina that indicated the trip
\nwas funded by the company, the lawmakers acknowledged they had
\n\"borrowed\" the money but would later repay it.<\/p>\n
However in an apparent contradiction, Pertamina, while
\nadmitting such an internal memo existed, on Friday insisted it
\ndid not finance the trip.<\/p>\n
\"The memo existed but we annulled it because it was not
\ncorrect. We did not finance the legislators' trip,\" president
\ndirector Ariffi Nawawi said on Friday.<\/p>\n
Erry said the KPK would investigate whether the memo, which
\nwas leaked to the press, was authentic.<\/p>\n
After the scandal broke, the House decided to reject the sale,
\nsaying it would be more beneficial for Pertamina to keep the
\ntankers in the long term. However, they then gave the government
\nfinal authority to make the decision.<\/p>\n
State Minister of State Enterprises Laksamana Sukardi gave the
\ngo-ahead for the deal, saying Pertamina needed the funds to
\nresolve its cash flow problems.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Pertamina said on Friday it had already began the
\nsale of the vessels to Norway's Frontline Ltd.<\/p>\n
Ariffi said Frontline had placed a 20 percent downpayment and
\nbid bonds worth US$5 million for each vessel. Frontline was the
\nhighest bidder in the tender, agreeing to buy the vessels for a
\ntotal of $184 million, he said.<\/p>\n
The previous management bought the vessels in 2002 for a total
\nof $130 million to reduce costs of transporting crude.<\/p>",
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