Bank Lippo donates back-to-school packages

TANGERANG (JP): Publicly listed Bank Lippo handed over 8,500 book packages and other school supplies to students at 19 state elementary schools located around Lippo Karawaci business and shopping complex in Curug on Friday.

One of the bank's directors, Harry Sasongko, said the "social activities" were conducted by the bank and other companies, which run their businesses from the Lippo Karawaci complex, under the umbrella of the Lippo Group.

"It's the way we show our social concern," he said during a handover ceremony at SDN II Kelapa Dua on Jl. Kelapa Dua Raya.

"But please, don't look at the cost of our donation. It's nothing to do with last year's riots in May. It's purely social assistance, that's all."

He was referring to the riots in and around Jakarta that paralyzed the capital, as hundreds of shopping centers, shops, banks and houses were set ablaze and looted by mobs between May 13 and May 15.

The group's Lippo Supermal at the Lippo Karawaci complex was burned and looted on May 14. Scores of looters were found dead inside the 22,000-square meter shopping mall, once dubbed the largest supermall in the region.

Among the occupants of the three-story American-style supermall were Mega M of PT Matahari Putra Prima and the indoor Kerry Leisure recreation center. There were over 200 shops selling brand name clothes, goods and other apparel, as well as a variety of restaurants, including American franchises Pizza Hut and McDonalds.

The supermall is still under renovation.

Harry said the assistance was expected to help lighten the economic burden of parents living nearby, ahead of the new school year.

Head of the SDN II elementary school, Tatang Sukirman, welcomed the gifts from Bank Lippo.

"We sincerely hope the assistance will help parents cope with the students' expenses," he said.

Uneasy moments

Parents of the students expressed thanks for the gifts, especially in such difficult times.

"If all businesses running their activities around here could do the same thing, the locals would be very happy with their existence," Yunus, a father of a student said.

Suparji, another parent, added that if all companies located near their villages carried out such social activities, locals in return would help secure their properties, and tragedies like the May riots would never again happen in the area.

"Locals would not take part in looting things from shops, as happened last year," Suparji said.

Bank Lippo's spokeswoman Cut Husniah said the free school packages were worth in total about Rp 97 million (US$14,500).

She said the Lippo Supermal would not be able to meet its initial plan to reopen this month, because many parts of the building remained under construction.

"We are unable to project when the supermall will reopen again," Husniah said.

Lippo Bank suffered a Rp 1.2 trillion net interest loss due to negative spread last year, compared to a net interest income of Rp 561 billion the previous year.

The bank's bad debt provisions were Rp 6.8 trillion, compared to Rp 134.12 billion in 1997.

The bank is one of eight private banks that have joined the government-sponsored recapitalization program.(41/bsr)