Hotel Mulia agrees to pay its debt

Hotel Mulia agrees to pay its debt

JAKARTA: The management of Hotel Mulia Senayan finally agreed
to pay its Rp 15 billion (US$1.7 million) debt to the city
administration to escape a court order to seize the hotel.

Lawyer Hotman Paris Hutapea claimed that the management of the
hotel, located on Jl. Asia Afrika, Central Jakarta, made the
payment on Tuesday afternoon.

The Central Jakarta District Court issued the decision on May
31 and planned to seize the five-star hotel on Thursday, selling
it at an auction, with the administration receiving Rp 15 billion
from the sale.

The legal dispute began in 1998 when the administration sued
the hotel's developer at the Central Jakarta District Court for
violating its building permit by constructing a 40-story hotel,
instead of 16 stories as mentioned in the permit.

The administration demanded the company pay a Rp 15 billion
fine for the violation. The district court rejected the suit, as
did Jakarta's High Court.

The Supreme Court ruled in favor of the administration last
December by overturning the district court's decision.

The hotel is owned by PT Jakarta Country Club, which is under
the control of businessman Djoko S. Tjandra. The hotel was built
to accommodate participants of the 1997 Southeast Asian Games in
the capital. --JP