Government to disclose OC findings on debt restructuring
Government to disclose OC findings on debt restructuring
JAKARTA (JP): An independent oversight committee (OC) has
finalized its review on major corporate debt restructuring deals
hammered out by the Financial Sector Policy Committee (FSPC), but
OC's findings will only be made public after the new economic
team has been formed, a senior government official said on
Tuesday.
Assistant to the Coordinating Minister for the Economy Dipo
Alam said the caretaker Cabinet did not have the authority to
announce the OC's findings.
"It wouldn't be ethical if we announced the results now ...
the results could influence sentiments toward our economy," Dipo
said at his office.
The OC said earlier it found weakness in the restructuring of
corporate debts that the FSPC had approved.
They included the restructuring deals of PT Chandra Asri,
Tirtamas Group, PT Seamless Pipe Jaya and PT Permadani
Khatulistiwa Nusantara.
According to the OC's chairman, Mar'ie Muhammad, the four
deals have not been in line with corporate restructuring
principles introduced by the FSPC itself.
He expected the FSPC to follow up on the OC's findings,
although the latter's recommendations were not binding.
The OC is also reviewing dozens of other corporate debt
restructuring deals.
FSPC is in charge of restructuring major corporate debts under
the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA). FSPC groups
several senior economics ministers. However, FSPC's work has
often been criticized, particularly because the restructuring
deals seem to be in favor of influential conglomerates.
Dipo refused to disclose the deals the OC had reviewed, saying
they were, as yet, confidential.
He said the OC handed over last Monday its findings to FSPC
chairman Burhanuddin Abdullah who was also the outgoing
coordinating minister for the economy.
Announcing the OC's review findings to the public is also a
precondition for the signing of the next letter of intent (LoI)
with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), he added.
According to Dipo, the government had promised the IMF that it
would announce the results by the end of last month.
The announcement should have also included a business plan of
IBRA asset sales and debt restructuring programs, he said.
The government must also announce the progress in its
privatization program, Dipo said.
The announcements are part of the six preconditions for the
signing of the LoI , he said.
He said the other preconditions were explanations on the
government's fuel subsidy, the central bank's base money and
inflation targets, and the acquisition scheme of PT Bank
Internasional Indonesia by state Bank Mandiri. (bkm)