KPPU to quiz IBRA over PT Indomobil and BCA sales
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The Business Competition Supervisory Commission (KPPU) has promised to investigate the allegedly shoddy deals behind the sales of government shares in car maker PT Indomobil Sukses Internasional and planned sales of shares in jewel in the crown Bank Central Asia (BCA).
KPPU chairman Mohammad Iqbal told a media conference on Friday that the commission would soon summon chairman of the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA) I Putu Gede Ary Suta, to obtain further information on the sales.
"We will summon related parties, especially the IBRA chairman, over the sales of Indomobil and BCA," Iqbal said. "We will cancel the transactions if there is evidence of any conspiracy in the tenders."
According to article 22 of Antimonopoly Law No. 5/1999, businesses are prohibited from conspiring with other parties to win a tender as that would be an unfair business practice.
KPPU is the agency established by the government to enforce this law.
IBRA sold Indomobil to local brokerage Trimegah Securities. However, it is speculated that the Salim Group was behind the purchase of Indomobil.
Salim, barred from the sale of Indomobil, which it pledged to IBRA along with more than 100 other firms in 1999 as settlement for about $5.3 billion the government had spent bailing out BCA, is again suspected of being behind one or two consortiums bidding for BCA.
There are currently eight official bidders for BCA: Farallon Capital, Newbridge Capital Inc. Consortium, Standard Chartered Bank, Bank Mega Consortium, Dynamic Choice, Indonesian Recovery Fund Limited, Korsorsium Berca and Korsorsium Pemegang Saham (shareholder consortium of Bank Panin).
The government has repeatedly stated that it would be difficult to trace the presence of the Salim Group in the BCA sale process, especially if it used a nominee.
Separately, Bank Indonesia Governor Sjahril Sabirin suggested that it would be hard to prevent Salim from reentering BCA as the bank was listed on the Jakarta Stock Exchange.
"Anyone can buy a minority block of shares of the bank through the capital market," he told reporters.
Elsewhere, State Audit Agency chairman Satrio "Billy" Judono said the government needed to set out firm and clear restrictions so as to prevent the country's business tycoons from regaining control of their assets currently under IBRA's control.
"Because if there is no strict prohibition, these tycoons will definitely try to take all their assets back," Billy said, as quoted by satunet.com on Friday, signaling disappointment over the handling of the sale of assets under IBRA.