KKN practices

I worked at the Monetary and Financial Research and Development Center of the Finance Ministry in 1990. The finance minister at the time was J.B. Sumarlin. I knew of the following:

Bambang Trihatmodjo, son of former president Soeharto, through PT Bimantara applied to the finance minister to buy (take over) shares from PT Intirub, a state-owned company in vehicle tire production with factories in Palembang. The minister established a team of experts to assess the value of PT Intirub shares. The team's findings showed that the shares at a nominal price of Rp 1,000 when the company was established, were worth Rp 7,000,000 a piece. The portfolio contained 1,000 shares.

Some time later the finance minister sold the Intirub shares to Bambang Trihatmodjo for Rp 1,000,000 only. The state suffered a loss of Rp 6 billion. It was said that the finance minister was coerced into selling the shares cheaply because there was an order from former president Soeharto.

Afterwards Bambamg Trihatmodjo sold the Intirub shares to the Salim Group. The price is not known, but it is certain that the sale yielded a huge profit. It was a very easy money earner.

Such practices conducted by the Soeharto family were not limited to the Intirub shares. They were also committed in relation to the shares of other state-owned companies and state properties in the form of land and buildings. If the Habibie government (the Attorney General) wishes to investigate such manipulations, it can easily do so because the archives are still in the Finance Ministry. Other owners of conglomerate businesses and cronies of former president Soeharto, were also involved in such practices.

Another matter worth probing into is the granting of credits at low interest by government banks to the projects of the Soeharto family. One example is the granting of credits with a ceiling of US$600 million by a consortium of banks to PT Timor Putra Nasional of which the majority of shares belong to Tommy Soeharto. Also Presidential Instruction No.2 of 1996 to PT TPN smelled of corruption, collusion and nepotism (KKN), broke the law, was detrimental to the state and enriched other people.

Is the Habibie government capable of taking action? The people will see.

SUHARSONO HADIKUSUMO

Jakarta