PAN chief in hot water over loan

PAN chief in hot water over loan

BANDUNG: Businessman and National Mandate Party (PAN) leader Soetrisno Bachir admitted on Sunday he had taken over a bank loan for PT Chirza Putra worth Rp 178 billion (US$18.7 million), which his rival politicians said was a bad debt.

The issue of the non-performing loan from the now-defunct Bank Dagang Negara (BDN) was brought up by his rivals as a reason to call for an extraordinary PAN congress to replace Sutrisno.

Sutrisno said he took over the loan for the company, which was owned by his elder brother, Kamaluddin Bachir, because the latter died in 2002.

However, he did not say whether the loan was a still bad debt or not with Bank Mandiri, which took over BDN's assets.

Sutrisno claimed that PAN's dissenting members who demanded the extraordinary congress have regrouped again into his camp. --Antara