Semen Padang accused of bribing West Sumatra legislators

Semen Padang accused of bribing West Sumatra legislators

Kasparman, The Jakarta Post, Padang

Moh. Zen Gomo, a member of West Sumatra's provincial
legislature, went on strike earlier this week to protest what he
claims to be collusion between the legislative body, the
provincial administration and state-owned cement company PT Semen
Padang in lying to the public and misusing public funds.

Gomo, also a legislator of the local chapter of the National
Mandate Party (PAN), decided to stop working temporarily after a
letter he issued last Wednesday to the legislature requesting
clarification of a questionable receipt of funds, including Rp
270 million from Semen Padang, did not receive any response.

"I am ashamed of working at this assembly after learning how
its members have acted blatantly against what they had promised
to the public during their election campaign," Gomo told The
Jakarta Post here on Thursday.

He said he would continue his strike until the newly endorsed
2002 budget was revised and the legislative council halted their
corrupt and collusive practices.

The legislator said in his letter that he felt disgusted by
the greed of the 54 legislators who accepted Rp 634.5 million
from the governor and Rp 270 million in cash from Semen Padang in
addition to appropriations already allocated for them in the
provincial administration's budget.

It is worth recalling that the West Sumatra legislature
approved last October the control of Semen Padang by the "local
people" and provincial administration and decided to support the
demand by Semen Padang's management to spin off the company from
its holding, state-owned Semen Gresik cement company.

Informed sources said the Rp 270 million from Semen Padang to
the legislators could be related to the legislature's support of
the management's campaign to retain the company as a cash cow for
themselves, local officials and politicians.

The board of directors of Semen Gresik, which owns 99.99
percent of Semen Padang, has asked for its subsidiary to convene
an extraordinary shareholders meeting to replace its management
but both the boards of directors and commissioners of Semen
Padang have refused to fulfill Semen Gresik's request.

"The provincial legislature already has its own budget, as
allocated in the provincial administration's budget, so why do
the legislators still accept additional money from the executive
branch and from Semen Padang," said Gomo, who claims to be the
only legislator who refused the money.

"This greedy attitude shows that the legislators, who claim to
represent the people's interests, do not have any sense of
crisis. Don't they know that 34 percent of the people in West
Sumatra are still classified as very poor and that the
unemployment rate is very high?," he retorted in his letter.

Gomo also addressed copies of his letter to PAN Chairman Amien
Rais, the Minister of Home Affairs and the Governor of West
Sumatra.

He lambasted what he considered wasteful spending by the
assembly in its daily operations.

Gomo submitted detailed calculations of how the assembly would
be able to save Rp 2.5 billion this year through efficiency and
austerity.

Apris Yaman, chairman of the local chapter of PAN, said his
faction was behind Gomo's move and that the provincial
legislative council should respond.

"So far, the provincial legislature has remained silent and
done nothing to repair its accountability," he said.

Arwan Kasri, chairman of the provincial legislature, regretted
Gomo's move, which was done without any consultation with his
faction.

"PAN faction should not support the province's budget if it is
considered to be contradictory to regional autonomy," he said.