KPK probing BNI-Texmaco scandal
Abdul Khalik, Jakarta
The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) has just embarked on an investigation into the alleged misuse of trillions of rupiah by giant textile company PT Texmaco and state-owned bank PT Bank Negara Indonesia (BNI).
KPK member Erry Riyana Harjapamekas said that the investigation was opened because there were indications of huge losses of taxpayers' money.
Erry said that the commission had questioned people from BNI, the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) and Texmaco, but no suspects had been named yet.
The KPK is now evaluating the precise amount of state losses from the transactions, which were part of preshipment facility funds over a six-year period, said Erry on Friday. The commission would be very meticulous in probing the case as many of the alleged irregularities took place several years ago during complicated business deals, Erry commented.
The Texmaco case first came to light when Laksamana Sukardi, the then Minister of State Enterprises and Investment under President Abdurrahman Wahid administration, testified on November 29, 1999 to the House of Representatives (DPR), that former President Soeharto and Texmaco had worked together to arrange for a state bank to extend credit to the textile giant.
Following that testimony, the founder of PT Texmaco Marimutu Sinivasan was declared a suspect by the Attorney General's Office (AGO), but pressure from politicians -- especially from the Golkar Party, which has links to Marimutu -- forced the AGO to halt the investigation. They claimed there was insufficient evidence to make a case.
In a later development, PT Texmaco almost sent Bank BNI into bankruptcy when it defaulted on debts worth some Rp 9.8 trillion. The government moved in to bail out the bank and Texmaco's massive debts were then taken over by the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA). Texmaco and IBRA agreed on the restructuring of those debts in 2000.
Part of the deal was that IBRA agreed to guarantee up to $100 million borrowed from BNI under another trade financing facility. BNI said it had only lent money after the IBRA guarantee.
Aside from investigating the company itself, Erry said that KPK would look into why BNI continued channeling huge amounts of low-interest export credit funds to the troubled company, and the fact that the credit had exceeded the legal lending limit. The KPK also wants to find out why there was such secrecy surrounding IBRA's dealings with Texmaco, he added. "We will concentrate on the role of the BNI and IBRA officers in the transactions," said Erry.
The government continues to support Texmaco, not only because it still hopes the company can repay its debts, but also because it worries about the welfare of Texmaco's thousands of workers.
Texmaco employs around 150,000 people and has five factories across Java, including synthetic fiber and machine tool factories. Some legislators have even called the group a national asset, and its flagship, PT Polysindo Eka Perkasa, is the world's leading polyester producer and the 12th largest company in Indonesia.
However, the company has frequently defaulted on its interest and debt installments since its 2000 agreement with IBRA. In April 2003, the company failed to pay US$25 million payment to BNI, while the company also failed to pay its $67 million debt payment earlier this year.
The government has tried in vain to sell the company to foreign buyers before IBRA was dissolved in February this year. Texmaco is now being handled by the new Asset Management Company (PPA), which replaced IBRA.