Govt determined to recover Rp 675b reforestation funds
Govt determined to recover Rp 675b reforestation funds
Fitri Wulandari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The government is considering various options, including
filing criminal charges, to recover some Rp 675.59 billion
(US$76.1 million) in reforestation funds lent to 14 industrial
timber plantation (HTI) companies whose licenses were recently
revoked.
"We have a few options from the most lenient, such as ordering
them to repay the funds, to the toughest, that is bringing them
to court to face criminal charges for misusing the funds," Koes
Saparijadi, spokesman for the Ministry of Forestry told The
Jakarta Post on Thursday.
According to Koes Saparijadi, the companies could be charged
with misusing the reforestation funds by not using them to
develop the concession areas as required under their licenses.
"The government has been too lenient. So, we shall do
everything to recover the funds," he said.
The amount of funds loaned to the 14 errant firms exceeds the
amount allocated by the government to repair and rebuild
elementary schools across the country for next year.
The government has allocated Rp 625 billion from the state
budget to renovate 90,000 Islamic and state elementary schools
across the country next year.
By way of another comparison, the funds loaned to the 14 HTI
firms totaled more than half of the reforestation fund target of
Rp 1.24 trillion set by the government for next year.
Last month, the Ministry of Forestry revoked the licenses of
14 HTI companies after an assessment showed they were not
financially and technically sound enough to carry out the
project.
The fourteen companies included PT Kiani Hutani Lestari in
East Kalimantan, which is owned by jailed tycoon Mohammad "Bob"
Hasan, and PT Menara Hutan Buana in Central Kalimantan, which is
owned by former president Soeharto's stepbrother, Probosutedjo.
Dissatisfied with the decision, 13 companies filed a class
action suit against the ministry at the Jakarta Administrative
Court, the hearing of which is still in progress.
The indication that the funds were misused was apparent in
their poor performance showing an average success rate of 20
percent, Koes said.
Of the total area of 989,079 hectares awarded to the
concessionaires, by Nov. 5 of this year they had managed only to
developed industrial timber plantations covering 188,950
hectares, despite the fact that the government had provided them
with loans.
"If they had used the loans properly, the plants would have
grown and the companies would not be running at a loss," he
added.
At present, the Ministry of Forestry plans to revoke the
operating licenses of an additional 13 industrial timber
plantation companies for failing to comply with sustainable
production requirements.
Revocation of operating licenses of HTI companies is part of a
government move to restructure the badly managed forestry
industry.
Economists and environmentalists, who have often voiced
concern over corruption in the industry, said the failure of the
HTI firms to meet their obligations had proved the charges of
rampant corruption in the industry.
They said technically, it was impossible for HTI firms to fail
to develop timber plantations as they had received many
facilities from the government to carry out the projects. At the
start of the operation, they are allowed to clear old growth
forests in their concession areas and sell the trees to raise
funds for the development of timber plantations. They are also
provided with interest-free reforestation funds by the
government.
14 HTI companies: PT Kiani, PT Menara Hutan Buana,
PT Acehnusa Indrapuri (Aceh), PT Adindo Hutani Lestari
(East Kalimantan), PT Tusam Hutani Lestari (Aceh),
PT Rimba Wawasan Permai (Aceh), PT Rimba Timur Sentosa (Aceh),
PT Surya Hutani Jaya (East Kalimantan), PT Intraca Hutani
Lestari (East Kalimantan), PT Wana Tani Lestari (Southeast
Sulawesi), PT Hutan Barumun (North Sumatra), PT Anangga
Pundinasa (East Kalimantan), PT Rimba Equator Permai (West
Kalimantan), PT Silva Inhutani Lampung (Lampung).