SEA Games consortium agrees debt repayment

SEA Games consortium agrees debt repayment

JAKARTA (JP): The 19th Southeast Asian (SEA) Games
underwriting consortium will pay its debts over the next two
years, starting next month, State Minister of Youth Affairs and
Sports Agung Laksono said on Friday.

Agung told a media conference after a meeting with consortium
representative Bambang Yoga Soegama that the group of business
heavyweights agreed to hand over the case to the police and the
Attorney General's Office if they failed to pay off the debts.

"They (the consortium) have approved of a legal settlement if
they fail to pay their debts," Agung said.

Consortium boss Bambang Trihatmodjo, one of former president
Soeharto's sons, was called to attend the meeting but did not
show up due to "unavoidable business appointments."

Bambang Yoga escaped a media barrage as he left Agung's office
via the emergency stairs. His absence from the media conference
left the biggest question, how the consortium intends to pay the
whopping debt, unanswered.

The consortium owes Rp 11 billion (US$1 million) to the Gelora
Senayan Management Board, the Jatiluhur water reservoir
authorities and hotels which accommodated participating athletes
during the SEA Games last October.

It also used Rp 35 billion of the reforestation fund reserved
for use by the Ministry of Forestry. The ministry set the
interest rate at 15 percent per annum.

Agung dismissed allegations that the government fund had been
swindled.

"The fund was disbursed to cover training expenses of our
athletes selected for the Games. Not one cent of the money went
to their personal accounts," Agung said.

In its audited report, the consortium unveiled a Rp 68 billion
financial loss. It borrowed Rp 23 billion from Bank Artha Graha
to ease the deficit.

Earlier in the day, the Association of Indonesian Wood Panel
Producers (Apkindo) handed over a Rp 3 billion grant to help the
National Sports Council cover the air tickets of the 119-strong
national team bound for the 13th Asian Games in Bangkok in
December.

Apkindo chairman Abbas Adhar said the association originally
pledged a Rp 2 billion donation, but agreed to provide another Rp
1 billion on Friday after learning of the financial problems
faced by the sports council.

The council's official in charge of planning and budgeting,
Sudharno, said the government would disburse its commitment of Rp
5.5 billion in November. He said Rp 3 billion of the state funds
would be used to finance the centralized training program which
started early this month, while the rest would be used to cover
the athletes' transportation to Bangkok. (yan)