Fahmi blames govt for poor business ethics

Fahmi blames govt for poor business ethics

JAKARTA (JP): A business leader calls the level of violations
of business ethics in Indonesia deplorable, and puts the blame
squarely at the government's door.

In a seminar discussing business ethics here on Saturday,
Fahmi Idris of the Kodel business group said poor law enforcement
is one of the prime causes of ethical violations in business.

Fahmi cited tolerance of monopolistic and oligopolistic
practices in the Indonesian economy as examples of violations.

These practices, he said, were made possible because the law,
or rather its enforcement, is weak.

The one-day seminar on "New Trends in Spirituality,
Implementation in Management" was held to mark the 10th
anniversary of the Paramadina Foundation, an organization of
scholars, business leaders and people from other walks of life
concerned with promoting Islam.

Kodel is one of the few indigenous groups to emerge in
Indonesia in the 1980s in a business world that had hitherto been
dominated by people of Chinese descent.

Given that Indonesia still has a strong paternalistic
tradition, Fahmi said the government must take the initiative to
ensure that businesses respect some agreed code of ethics.

The government should set an example, he said, adding that a
lot depends on "the government's will."

However, he added later that the government has already
started to realize the need to restructure the economy.

Aburizal Bakrie of the Bakrie & Brothers group and chairman of
the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry said that while
lobbying is an acceptable business practice, it should be
governed by ethics.

Defining lobbying as a means to approach those in power, he
said some businessmen in this country would do anything to
achieve their goals, while others would be more restrained.

"Would you be willing to let your wife go with another man for
business?" he asked, citing an example of the length that some
businessmen would go to in order to achieve their goals.

Anugerah Pekerti of the Center for Management Development
(PPM) said there is a close link between spirituality, ethics and
business management.

A company can make profits without abandoning ethics and
spirituality, Anugerah said.

He said some hospitals in the United states are professionally
and profitably managed, but charge low fees. "We can be of
service to society by implementing good management," he said.

Imaduddin Abdurrachim, a management consultant, said although
not a single book has been written about Islamic business ethics,
that does not mean that Islam does not recognize them.

"Matsushita's Seven Principles" of business ethics, for
instance, he described as very Islamic.

The seven principles, devised by Konosuke Matsushita who
founded the giant Matsushita Electric Industrial Company of Japan
and is a writer of numerous books on management, are: Service to
the public, Fairness and Honesty, Teamwork for the Common Cause,
Untiring Effort for Improvement, Courtesy and Humility,
Accordance with Natural Law, and Gratitude for Blessings. (05)