Prudential case and foreign confidence

Prudential case and foreign confidence

From Media Indonesia

Reports on the recent commercial court decision to declare
Prudential insurance company bankrupt has aroused concern due to
the various oddities involved. The first question is how an
insurance firm with assets worth well over a trillion rupiah
could be declared bankrupt after a dispute over an unpaid
consulting fee of just over 3 billion rupiah.

Why did the judges make such a hasty decision that could
affect the fate of more than eight thousand employees and over
100,000 customers? The receiver now in charge of handling the
assets also acted too fast against customer interests for reasons
of securing debt payments demanded by the litigant.

Meanwhile, the executives were too slow in their response to
the matter, as if they had adopted a wait-and-see attitude. As a
customer of Prudential, I would rather trust this company more
than this receiver in safeguarding the rights of policyholders.

But all of this has further eroded business uncertainty in
Indonesia thereby greatly reducing foreign confidence. For
example, when I ordered books via a popular Internet site that
ships all around the world, the publishers replied that they did
not serve Indonesia any longer because a very high percentage of
the goods ordered failed to reach their buyers.

So, why do we continue to worsen this already negative image
by declaring this sound and solid firm bankrupt? Indeed, the case
should have been heard by a civil court anyway, which could have
ordered Prudential to settle the debt, instead of the commercial
court with its bankruptcy ruling.

SUHENTO LIAUW
Jakarta