Merpati gets new chief

Merpati gets new chief

We wonder why Garuda Indonesia's president Soepandi is still trying to be euphemistic about the Friday's dismissal of Merpati Nusantara Airlines chief Ridwan Fataruddin. After all, over the past two weeks the general public has followed the dispute between Ridwan and Minister of Transport Haryanto Dhanutirto.

Haryanto himself disclosed earlier in the week, through Air Transport Director General Zainuddin Sikado, that Ridwan would soon be fired, citing a violation of procedure in the construction of Merpati's new office building in Jakarta. Haryanto's account, which has been categorically denied by Ridwan, followed Ridwan's public announcement that the Merpati management would not lease 16 Indonesian-built CN-235 aircraft from PT Arthasaka Nusaphala because of the planes' high operating costs, combined with the high leasing fee asked.

We had sincerely hoped that Soepandi would enlighten the public as to what had really happened with Merpati as soon as he returned home on Wednesday, together with President Soeharto's entourage, from a two-week overseas trip. The controversy over the lease fee asked by Arthasaka and Sikado's blunt accusations against Ridwan in relation to the office building have been puzzling us.

We do not share the view, expounded by Soepandi, that Ridwan's dismissal was a matter of course; part of the dynamic process within the airline company. The controversy and polemics which preceded the move strengthened the impression that Ridwan's replacement was not a natural end to his 26-year career at Merpati.

Obviously, it is entirely the right of the government, as the sole shareholder in Merpati, to reconstitute the airline's management. But it is also the right of the people to know what has really happened at Merpati. We think it would have been in conformity with the spirit of the reform of state companies, launched in 1989, if Soepandi had explained the process of negotiations concerning the proposed lease. In keeping with the drive for greater transparency in state companies, he might have commented on the question whether the price asked by Arthasaka was competitive in international terms.

Official explanations are even more essential after several newspapers printed, last week, a leaked document from the chief of the Government Audit Agency which strongly recommended to the ministers of finance and transportation that Merpati's current lease of eight Fokker-28 jets from Arthasaka be terminated or amended because it was largely to Merpati's disadvantage.

It is not fair to Arthasaka if the news reports and rumors about the company are not straightened out by the government. Allowing negative public inferences to be drawn about Arthasaka is not conducive to the development of the aircraft leasing business. If we are really serious about promoting the sales of the aircraft made by the state-owned IPTN aerospace company in Bandung, the business climate for leasing companies should be made favorable. For IPTN, as for most aircraft manufacturers, it is virtually impossible to sell aircraft on a cash basis. In fact, leasing companies and other kinds of financial institutions have a crucial role to play in facilitating aircraft marketing.