Property swaps must have president's nod
JAKARTA (JP): The Ministry of Finance is warning government officials to seek permission from the President or the finance minister if they plan to sell or exchange state-owned property to private sector companies.
Agus Haryanto, a spokesman for the Ministry of Finance, said in a statement on Monday that ruilslag (Dutch-derived word meaning property exchange) should not inflict financial losses on the state.
Lawyer Frans Hendra Winarta said yesterday that the ruilslag should be regulated and its implementation should be discussed at the House of Representatives (DPR).
The noted political analyst and lawyer doubted whether the decision could economize the use of state assets.
He warned that as long as the public has no control over state property, abuses of power will go on.
"State assets actually belong to the people. The government cannot exchange the assets without permission from the people," Frans told The Jakarta Post in a telephone interview.
The practice of exchanging state property, such as a plot of land located in a strategic place, with another kind of property built by private investors, is prevalent among government officials who are seeking to overcome shortages of funds in their respective institutions.
Ministry spokesman, Agus Haryanto, said Ministry of Finance Decree No. 350/KMK.03/1994, signed by Minister of Finance Mar'ie Muhammad on July 13, but not announced until Monday, regulates ruilslag in a bid to implement Presidential Decree No. 16/1994 on the use of state budgets.
"State property, such as a plot of land, could only be liquidated, sold, handed over, exchanged or donated, with the permission of the President through the recommendation of the minister of finance," he said.
Mar'ie himself is currently on a trip to major world cities, including London, Washington, New York, Ottawa and Hong Kong, to discuss financial matters with officials there. He started the trip on July 13 and is scheduled to come back today.
Progressive
Referring to the ministerial decree as a progressive instrument for blocking government officials from selling state assets arbitrarily, analyst Arief Budiman of the Satya Wacana Christian University in Salatiga, Central Java, said that transparency in state-linked transactions should be a priority.
"The point here is that the public should be able to control the administration," Arief said. "But I am pessimistic about this in the current situation."
The decree stipulates that the acceptable reasons for allowing ruilslag are to cope with a new master plan, to optimize idle plots of land, to increase efficiency through building relocation, to fulfill organizational demands and to accommodate special purposes, such as meeting military needs.
The decree also requires bidding procedures which include the participation of a minimum of five bidders, the involvement of independent consultants and the inspection of the property to be exchanged.
The Ministry of Finance estimates Indonesia's state assets at Rp 53.7 trillion (US$24.8 billion) as of April 1, 1994. The assets consist mostly of land and buildings. (09)