Mining companies deny paying lawmakers to get law passed
Leony Aurora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
State mining companies PT Aneka Tambang (Antam), PT Tambang Batubara Bukit Asam (PTBA) and PT Timah denied a media report that they were asked to pay Rp 7 billion (US$700,000) to ensure the House of Representatives passed a bill on mineral and coal mining.
Suara Pembaruan afternoon daily, citing an anonymous source, reported on Wednesday the state mining companies had collected Rp 3 billion for the House special committee formed in June to deliberate the draft law.
"We object to this report, which is entirely untrue," Antam president director Dedi Aditya Sumanagara said at a press conference on Thursday. Timah president director Thobrani Alwi and PTBA president director Ismet Harmaini also attended the conference.
"We will take action according to the law," said Dedi, adding that the report damaged the reputations of the publicly listed companies.
The report also claimed that private mining companies refused to pay to have the law passed because they feared the law would hamper mining activities.
The chairman of the House special committee deliberating the law, Agusman Effendi, also denied the committee had asked for money from the mining companies.
"We have our own budget," said Agusman, who also chairs House Commission VII on energy and mining. He said all of the members of the special committee had denied requesting money.
The mining bill committee is comprised of 50 members, including 12 from the Golkar Party faction, 10 from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) faction and four from the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) faction.
The proposed law on mining would replace a law that was enacted 28 years ago and would introduce several significant changes. The new law would incorporate the role of local administrations in issuing licenses subsequent to the implementation of the regional autonomy law.
An article in the draft law also stipulates that all mining companies holding operating and production licenses must process part of their output domestically.