Nirwan Bakrie sued at commercial court

Nirwan Bakrie sued at commercial court

JAKARTA (JP): PT Sinar Mas Multifinance has filed a bankruptcy
suit with the Jakarta Commercial Court against prominent
businessman Nirwan D. Bakrie for his allegedly unfulfilled
personal guarantee of over Rp 60 billion (US$8.5 million) in
defaulted loans, according to a court document.

The document, dated Jan. 4, specifies that Nirwan pledged a
personal guarantee for a loan extended to PT Bakrie Capital
Indonesia (BCI), an affiliated company of family run diversified
conglomerate PT Bakrie & Brothers.

The loan, which was disbursed in August 1997, was to finance
the accounts receivable owned by BCI. The loan matured a year
later in August 1998.

"Because BCI failed to repay the matured loan, we can recall
the loan security which is the personal guarantee from Nirwan
Bakrie," said the plaintiff's lawyer Benny Harman from Abdul
Hakim G. Nusantara & Partners law firm.

Benny said his client had sent letters to BCI asking for
repayment of the matured loan, "but they only released a
statement that they were not able to repay yet because they had a
cash flow problem due to the economic crisis."

Benny concluded that with such an excuse, the defendant
admitted that the matured debt existed and that they could not
repay it.

According to the 1998 Bankruptcy Law, the plaintiff has to
prove that the party it is charging with bankruptcy -- an
individual or a business entity -- has at least one matured debt
and two creditors.

Benny also said Nirwan's personal guarantee was callable
without having first to liquidate the assets of BCI, the direct
party that owed the loan.

"The personal guarantor can be treated as if he were the
direct debtor, according to the existing law," Benny said.

Thus Nirwan was responsible as if he were the direct recipient
of the loan proceeds, Benny added.

Nirwan was qualified to be declared bankrupt, he said, because
he also gave a personal guarantee to other parties, namely Bank
Lippo, Bank Internasional Indonesia and Bank Nusa Internasional.

The court hearing for the case will open next week, according
to commercial court staff. (udi)