Deal with Police mutually beneficial says developer
JAKARTA (JP): The developer of the planned new City Police headquarters said the barter agreement between the company and the police would be mutually beneficial given tight control by the government.
Moniek S.W. Sudjatmoko, the director of the developer PT Mandalapratama Permai, said yesterday an inter-departmental team of police, the Army, the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Finance, the developer, and consultants of both parties would thoroughly evaluate the barter agreement before construction began.
"The team would work once all necessary permits are secured," she said.
The company is owned by Hutomo Mandala Putra, the President's youngest son. It secured a deal with the Police in 1995 after it won a bid over five other companies.
Two were affiliated to the Citra business group owned by Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana, the President's eldest daughter.
Moniek is sure the project to build a new police headquarters, a three-star hotel and a commercial center, including a mall, would begin this year.
Investment in the project would reach around Rp 1 trillion, Moniek said, and it should be completed in two years.
She was responding to doubts, voiced by councilors, about whether the barter agreement on the 14.5-hectare site project would really benefit the police.
"The police sound sure about this," she said, adding they were unlikely to accept an unfavorable deal.
Last year the Supreme Audit Agency (Bepeka) announced that several property barter deals involving central government assets led to losses of Rp 2.76 billion between October 1995 and March 1996. One of the deals was an agreement on the razed National Police headquarters in South Jakarta, reports said.
Lack of official supervision was said to have caused the loss.
Moniek claimed the company's proposal was going through the necessary procedures. She confirmed earlier statements by Hutomo, known as Tommy, that the proposal was at the Ministry of Defense, and would be forwarded to the Ministry of Finance.
"Then Tommy will take over (permits) and seek approval from the President," she told The Jakarta Post. Barter agreements or sale of state property worth more than Rp 10 billion must have the President's approval.
The proposal will then go to the State Secretariat and other government offices before the company deals with city offices, Moniek said.
National Police Chief Lt. Gen. Dibyo Widodo said earlier the barter deal would definitely go through once necessary permits were acquired.
The estimated value of the property is Rp 538 billion including interest for the period of the three-year agreement.
Negotiations
The estimated value would be the basis of negotiations with the team evaluating the project, Moniek added.
"We would make certain adjustments, if, for instance, we are asked to build extra facilities, but we would still refer to this estimate."
The value was determined by considering the city revenue agency's estimation, and estimations of the district office, she said. Estimates based on only market price would render the figure too high, she added.
The city estimates land on Jl. Jend. Sudirman is Rp 9 million per square meter.
"We know the market price of the land there is very high," she said, "But a property barter deal involves more expenses (than land price)," she said.
PT Mandalapratama Permai helped the police acquire a certificate for its land, she said. In the agreement six hectares of the plot will belong to the company. (anr/ste)