Bank Jakarta asks for adjournment, seeks settlement

JAKARTA (JP): The Jakarta State Administrative Court postponed the trial of Bank Jakarta's suit against Bank Indonesia yesterday, as the privately owned bank said it would try to seek an out of court settlement over its closure.

Bank Jakarta lawyers made the request to the court just as it was about to begin testimony from Bank Indonesia, the central bank, which would have exposed Bank Jakarta's financial state.

But lawyers from Bank Jakarta maintained that the request for an adjournment was based on a desire to seek an amicable solution to the issue.

"We still believe that an out of court settlement is the best solution," lawyer Mohammad Yusuf told the court.

He claimed there were new developments in which the government, through the central bank, seemed to agree and be more accommodating to several conditions submitted by Bank Jakarta earlier.

The seesawing legal battle in the Bank Jakarta case has seen the court swing to both opposites of the pendulum.

Bank Jakarta was one of the 16 insolvent banks closed by the government in November following the announcement of a financial bailout package from the International Monetary Fund.

But it soon filed a suit at the Jakarta State Administrative Court against the decision. It also appealed to remain in operation while the case was being heard.

The Jakarta State Administrative Court issued a by-verdict last week allowing Bank Jakarta to reopen while the case was being tried, but the high court then issued the letter ordering it to "disregard" the by-verdict.

Chief of the Jakarta Administrative Court, Lintong Oloan Siahaan, maintained yesterday that the by-verdict remains valid as there is not a single word in the high court's letter which indicates the nullification of the by-verdict.

Moreover, he said, the court's ruling can not be annulled by a mere administrative letter.

The conditions Bank Jakarta set for an out of court settlement ranged from government acknowledgement that Bank Jakarta was a sound bank, to a permit from both the central bank and the Ministry of Finance allowing Bank Jakarta to fully reimburse themselves of its account holders.

Lawyers representing Bank Indonesia and the Ministry of Finance said Bank Jakarta would be allowed to reimburse its account holders with its own funds.

Lawyer Achmad S. Kartohadiprodjo told The Jakarta Post the bank would also be given the authority to collect money from its debtors.

But Achmad's colleague, Luhut M.P Pangaribuan, said the government would not revoke its decision to liquidate the bank despite the Jakarta State Administrative Court's by-verdict last week allowing the closed bank to reopen.

Bank Jakarta is still waiting on whether it will be granted the operational license it requested following the by-verdict issued by the Jakarta State Administrative Court.

Probosutedjo, President Soeharto's half-brother and major shareholder of Bank Jakarta, has been fuming since the closure of his bank, questioning the reasons why his bank was liquidated.

The court was adjourned yesterday till Jan. 15, after which lawyers from the two parties must reconvene if they fail to reach an out of court settlement. (10)