Navy admits mismanaging foundations

SURABAYA: Navy Chief of Staff Adm. Bernard Kent Sondakh said on Tuesday that it had liquidated 16 of its 26 foundations dealing with hotels, transportation, and services because of inefficiency.

He said the foundations had been so badly run they could not even finance their own operational costs. He said the foundations had never yielded profits due to poor management.

Bernard said the dissolution of the foundations had only netted a total of Rp 5 billion, making it impossible to give holiday bonuses to thousands of soldiers.

"Frankly, I want all of them to be closed down because it is not the duty of the Navy to run businesses. So it is normal if the businesses do not prosper," he said.

Bernard said a team had been formed to study the feasibility of the remaining foundations. The results of the study would determine the foundations' viability, he said. --Antara