Hapless house buyers want down payment
Hapless house buyers want down payment
JAKARTA (JP): Hundreds of customers of Bumi Indah housing
complex in Tangerang intensified their struggle on Thursday to
regain the down payments of between Rp 5 million (US$666) and Rp
8 million they paid to the site's developer.
Forty of their representatives visited the Jakarta Legal Aid
Institute on Thursday to seek help in their dispute with
developer PT Prasetia Pertiwi, a member of the Bank Harapan
Sentosa (BHS) group.
The customers' spokesman, Agus, said they demanded the company
immediately return their money, which they paid to the developer
in 1996 as a deposit for the promised houses, because Prasetia
Pertiwi had failed to meet its promise to build the houses.
On Thursday the site was empty.
"We have often asked the firm to return our money but they
only gave us promises," said Agus, who claimed to represent 900
customers.
The customers, he said, paid the down payment through BHS and
Bank Guna, which were both liquidated by the government in
November last year. They now wanted the banks' owner, Hendra
Rahardja to return their money, Agus said.
"Although Hendra has been reported for fleeing abroad, we know
his assets are still here," he said.
He said Hendra's assets included a motorcycle company whose
factory was in North Jakarta.
"Hendra's executives still run the firm," he added.
The customers asked the government to seize Hendra's assets,
sell them and give the money to the customers, he said.
None of the developer's executives could be reached for
comment on Thursday.
Lawyer Paulus R. Mahulette from the Jakarta Legal Aid
Institute said that he would soon summon the developer to discuss
the customers' demand.
"As a last resort, we will consider taking the case to court.
We will sue the developer for swindling," Paulus said.
He said hundreds of customers of the Kota Tenjo housing
complex in Bogor regency, developed by the same company, visited
the institute to seek help with a similar problem about two
months ago. (jun)