Cilegon Chamber of Commerce Denies Extorting Chinese Contractor Over Chandra Asri Alkali Project
A video showing Cilegon Chamber of Commerce (Kadin) officials and local business figures demanding project allocations from Chinese contractor Chengda Engineering Co — set to develop the Chandra Asri Alkali plant — went viral on Instagram.
In the video, a senior Cilegon Kadin official, identified by the initials MS, was recorded demanding that the Chinese state-owned enterprise involve local businesses in the Chandra Asri Alkali construction project. "Without any tender process. The allocation must be clear, without any tender. Five trillion rupiah for Kadin, or three trillion rupiah for Kadin — the allocation must be clear, without any tender," MS said in the video.
When asked to confirm the video's contents, Cilegon Kadin First Deputy Chairman Isbatullah Alibasja denied that the chamber had extorted Chengda, as suggested by the narrative accompanying the circulating video. He said the Cilegon Kadin had merely requested the involvement of local businesses in the massive Chandra Asri Alkali project, arguing that the national economic climate, particularly in Cilegon, was in poor condition.
"This is to support the government's efforts to reduce unemployment and poverty, and to sustain economic growth momentum, as our fiscal policy is currently in deficit," Isbatullah said.
In the video, a senior Cilegon Kadin official, identified by the initials MS, was recorded demanding that the Chinese state-owned enterprise involve local businesses in the Chandra Asri Alkali construction project. "Without any tender process. The allocation must be clear, without any tender. Five trillion rupiah for Kadin, or three trillion rupiah for Kadin — the allocation must be clear, without any tender," MS said in the video.
When asked to confirm the video's contents, Cilegon Kadin First Deputy Chairman Isbatullah Alibasja denied that the chamber had extorted Chengda, as suggested by the narrative accompanying the circulating video. He said the Cilegon Kadin had merely requested the involvement of local businesses in the massive Chandra Asri Alkali project, arguing that the national economic climate, particularly in Cilegon, was in poor condition.
"This is to support the government's efforts to reduce unemployment and poverty, and to sustain economic growth momentum, as our fiscal policy is currently in deficit," Isbatullah said.