Ministry of finance urged to maximize debt recovery

Rendi A. Witular, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Vice President Jusuf Kalla has ordered the Ministry of Finance to maximize efforts to recover bad debts owed by a number of noted tycoons and politicians by selling their assets at optimal prices.

"The Ministry of Finance is expected to fully recover bad loans belonging to tycoons and politicians, whose debts are being handled by the ministry for auction," said Kalla at a press conference on Tuesday.

Kalla was responding to a recent move by the ministry to auction assets belonging to 34 creditors of Bank Mandiri totaling some Rp 2.28 trillion (US$2.42 billion) and $225.78 million.

Some of the assets are collateral on debts that were written off by Bank Mandiri when the debtors defaulted.

The Ministry of Finance's Directorate General of State Auctions handles debts written off by state banks.

According to a ministry report, only Rp 58.8 billion and $1.18 million of the debts have been repaid.

The creditors include both private companies and state enterprises.

The report also says that a number of politicians are responsible for the debts, including former Golkar Party treasurer Setya Novanto, the current leader of the National Mandate Party (PAN) Sutrisno Bachir and former People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) member Oesman Sapta.

A number of businessmen are also mentioned in the report, such as Sudwikatmono, Slamet Gondokusumo, Novian Kaman and Made Oka Masagung.

Kalla was optimistic that the ministry could convert the bad debts into maximum proceeds for state coffers.