Funds from COW applicants legal, Adjat says
JAKARTA (JP): Director General of Mining of the Ministry of Mines and Energy Adjat Sudradjat admitted yesterday to accepting money from applicants of seventh generation contracts of work (COWs).
Adjat, however, said the payments were legal and would be used to cover the cost of photocopying the COW documents.
"The money was not used and will not be used for any other purpose but for photocopying the COW documents," Adjat was quoted by the spokesman for the Ministry of Mines and Energy, Bangun Usman Harahap, as saying.
Bangun acknowledged that the directorate general of mining had asked the applicants of the seventh generation COWs for Rp 24.97 million (US$9,615) per application but payment was not obligatory.
Contractors had never been under any obligation to pay the money to ensure that their COW applications would be processed smoothly, he said.
The Ministry of Mines and Energy last month submitted 164 seventh generation COWs for mineral resources exploration to the House of Representatives, which assesses them before submitting them to the President for approval.
According to media reports, mining companies applying for new mining contracts had been asked to pay Rp 25 million per application to ensure that House Commission VI, which would examine the contracts, would not revise them.
The media reports said members of Commission VI were using the money to finance trips to various provinces to collect input from local people and local administrations regarding the concessions covered by the 164 draft COWs.
According to the existing mining law, the government should consult with the House over new mining contract applications before giving approval.
However, contractors feared that House members would change the contents of the contracts to meet growing pressure from the public that the government should have a stake in mining projects in the country.
Commission deputy head Lili Asdjudiredja earlier denied accepting the money, saying the House had its own budget to cover its members' field trips to the provinces.
"We have never met with any of the mining firms," said Lili.
50 copies
Adjat said his office had made about 50 copies of every draft contract and sent them to House members, other related government agencies, provincial governors and regents for examination.
Each copy, which is about 200 pages, is worth Rp 45,400 and contains a contractor's profile, terms of contract, colored maps of each concession and other information.
Adjat said his office would make another 500 copies of the COWs after they received final approval from the President.
The 500 copies of COWs would be distributed to various parties including the contractors; commission members; all related ministers and their law offices, excluding the minister of education and culture and the minister of religion; various offices of the Investment Coordinating Boards; Bank Indonesia; the governors, regents and heads of subdistricts where the concessions areas are located, and others. (jsk)