Hashim's lawyers file counterclaim against IBRA
Hashim's lawyers file counterclaim against IBRA
JAKARTA (JP): Lawyers of businessman Hashim S. Djojohadikusumo
slapped a counterclaim on the Indonesian Bank Restructuring
Agency (IBRA) on Monday over the agency's Rp 596 billion (US$68
million) lawsuit against defunct Bank Istismarat Indonesia.
The bank was owned by Hashim and his father, Sumitro.
The counterclaim was handed over to the panel of judges in the
initial hearing of the IBRA lawsuit at the Central Jakarta
District Court, presided over by judge Subardi.
In the counterclaim, chief defense lawyer Hotman Paris Hutapea
said the lawsuit brought against 14 parties -- including Hashim,
Sumitro and a company in which Hashim is chief director -- was
unclear on some factors, including whether the plaintiff was the
country, the government or IBRA.
"IBRA is a different legal institution from the government and
the country," Hotman said in the counterclaim.
The IBRA lawsuit, filed in August, centers around the Rp 596
billion that Bank Istismarat received in the form of government
liquidity support in 1998 when the economic crisis worsened.
The bank, along with Bank Pelita -- both owned by Hashim -- is
among 10 banks shut down by the government in 1998 in its attempt
to restructure the country's ailing banking sector.
After issuing a number of public warnings, IBRA threatened
last year to take legal action if Hashim failed to settle the Rp
3.2 trillion debts of both Bank Istismarat and Bank Pelita.
In the IBRA lawsuit against Bank Istismarat, chief prosecutor,
Yoseph Suardi Sabda, accused the bank's owners of breaching
lending provisions by channeling most of their money to other
businesses.
In turn, Hotman Paris said on Monday that filing a lawsuit
against PT Bumisuri Adilestari (BA) -- which was a shareholder of
Bank Istismarat and in which Hashim is chief director -- was
baseless, since the authority that the shareholders had over the
bank had been transferred to IBRA, immediately after IBRA took
over the bank.
"Litigating PT BA is against Article 40 of Government
Regulation No. 17/1999 on IBRA, which stipulates that the
authority of a shareholder is transferred to IBRA once IBRA takes
over the bank," Hotman said.
He added that his client was shocked upon reading IBRA's
lawsuit which had failed to provide substantiation for IBRA's
figure of Rp 596 billion.
"We demand IBRA give evidence in the form of calculations
amounting to Rp 596 billion. We also demand IBRA's explanation
for the takeover of Bank Istismarat's total assets, worth nearly
Rp 1.4 trillion, and on what have the assets been used for,"
Hotman said.
"The accountability must be given to prove where all the
assets have gone. Without it, the lawsuit is premature."
IBRA has named 14 defendants in the lawsuit. They are Bank
Istismarat Indonesia; PT BA; Sumitro Djojohadikusumo; Hashim S.
Djojohadikusumo; the bank's commissioners -- Okie Rehardi Lukita,
Adi Widjaja, Mawardi Yunus, Siswanto Sudomo and Agus Anwar; the
bank's chief director, Syafril Nur; the bank's directors --
Siswoko, Asrul Rizany, Didik Widjijanto and Toos Djuniarli.
The lawsuit states that instead of paying the debts, the
bank's owners had extended credits to other businesses and paid
extravagant sums to the bank's directors for expenses amounting
to some Rp 127 billion.
The prosecutors stated that as personal and corporate
guarantors of the bank, Hashim, Sumitro and PT BA were obligated
to pay off the debts of Bank Istismarat, and if they did not,
legal action needed to be taken against them.
"They must be made to pay with interest. Should they fail to
do so, they should be put in jail," the IBRA petition stated.
Some Rp 140 trillion in liquidity support was extended by the
government to banks in 1998 in a bid to prevent the complete
collapse of the banking system.
IBRA controls more than Rp 230 trillion in bad loans
transferred by closed down and recapitalized banks. The agency,
however, is finding it difficult to sway the debtors, mostly
influential businessmen, to restructure the loans. (ylt)