Roman Gold firm on stake claim

Roman Gold firm on stake claim

JAKARTA (Dow Jones): The British Virgin Islands company locked in a dispute with Manufacturers Life Insurance Ltd. of Canada over ownership of a 40 percent stake in Indonesian insurance company, PT Asuransi Jiwa Manulife Indonesia, intends to press on with its claim, despite a criminal complaint filed against it by the Canadian company, its director said on Wednesday.

Roman Gold Assets Ltd. Director Haryono Winarta told Dow Jones Newswires that he bought the shares for Rp 350 billion (US$37 million) on Oct. 19 from Highmead Ltd., a company registered in Western Samoa.

He said that prior to the purchase, he examined documents provided by Highmead Ltd., which showed Highmead had the right to sell the shares after a declaration of bankruptcy by the shares' previous owner, PT Dharmala Sakti Sejahtera.

"My intention is just to claim my rights as the owner of the shares," Haryono said.

Haryono also reiterated his company's previous claim, made in a report filed with the Indonesian police, that the Oct. 26 purchase of the same 40 percent stake in PT Asuransi Jiwa Manulife Indonesia by the Canadian company involved a forged share certificate, and was thus illegal.

Manufacturers Life, or Manulife, has rejected the claim, arguing that it bought the shares at a government-run bankruptcy auction and has done nothing wrong.

Last week, Manulife also filed a criminal complaint, accusing Roman Gold and the owner of the Dharmala Group, Suyanto Gondokusumo, for engaging in forgery, embezzlement and receiving stolen goods in an effort to block Manulife's purchase.