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)