Resilience council line-up reshuffled
JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto has removed Widjojo Nitisastro from the position of secretary-general of the Economic and Monetary Resilience Council, a body set up to oversee the implementation of the country's economic reform program.
The President, through decree No. 47 issued March 19, named the Salim Group's Anthony Salim to succeed Widjojo, who moves to the vice chairman's post on the council.
The council is chaired by Soeharto himself.
The new decree also establishes a special executive body to carry out the council's daily activities.
The executive body, chaired by Coordinating Minister of Economy, Finance and Industry Ginandjar Kartasasmita, is obliged to report its activities to the President.
The resilience council was established in January to supervise the implementation of the 50-point economic reform program agreed to by Soeharto and International Monetary Fund (IMF) managing director Michel Camdessus as the condition for an IMF-sponsored US$43 billion rescue package.
"The secretary-general of this council will have full responsibility and authority to ensure the timely implementation of the reform measures agreed to with the IMF," Soeharto says in his Jan. 15 letter of intent to Camdessus.
The State Secretariat distributed copies of the President's decree to the media yesterday without explanation.
Widjojo could not be contacted for comment yesterday.
Anthony is a member of the Corporate Foreign Debt Settlement Team, set up in January and chaired by former minister of finance Radius Prawiro.
The team is assigned to assist Indonesian private enterprises to settle a total of $73.96 billion in debts with their overseas creditors.
The council's membership was also partly changed due to the establishment of the new cabinet. Members of the previous council included ministers who held council positions on an ex-officio status.
The members of the current council include Ginandjar, Minister of Finance Fuad Bawazier, Minister/State Secretary Saadilah Mursjid, Minister of Industry and Trade Mohamad "Bob" Hasan, Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Alatas, Minister of Empowerment of State Enterprises Tanri Abeng, Governor of Bank Indonesia Sjahril Sabirin, Radius Prawiro and chairman of the Federation of Domestic Private Banks Atmosardjono Subowo. (prb)