Sumarlin discloses huge losses
JAKARTA (JP): The Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) has discovered financial losses of hundreds of billions of rupiah caused by government overspending, overpriced projects, unpaid taxes, bad loans at state-owned banks and other irregularities in state finance management.
This was disclosed by BPK chairman J.B. Sumarlin at a meeting with the House of Representatives yesterday during which he submitted the agency's audit results for the first semester (April to September) of the 1996/1997 fiscal year.
A summary of BPK's audit report shows that more than Rp 210.41 billion of state budget funds were lost by ministries, state- owned companies and state banks and over Rp 38.24 billion was found to have been lost by local governments.
"Over Rp 63.6 billion of state losses in the fiscal year 1995/1996 were also reported to BPK by ministries and government agencies," Sumarlin said.
The report also stated that Rp 22.7 billion was wasted due to poor planning in a Ministry of Public Works project; Rp 73.6 billion was lost due to problems and bad loans at state-owned Bank Rakyat Indonesia; Rp 35.06 billion was lost due to overspending in the distribution of urea fertilizer; and Rp 21.13 billion was loss due to payments by and for PT Sucofindo surveyor company because there were incomplete verification documents to support payments.
The audit report said other losses were caused by ineffective and inefficient implementation of projects, poor land utilization and the ineffective stockpiling of rice imports and unsuccessful market operations by the National Logistics Agency.
Other causes of losses were lengthy red tape, poor coordination within ministry offices as well as between central and local governments and lack of transparency in the bidding process of solicited projects.
Financial losses and efficiencies resulting in losses, occurred at the ministries of agriculture, public works, transmigration, health, home affairs, religious affairs, education and culture, and tourism, post and telecommunications.
Irregularities causing state losses included:
-- Rp 35 billion was lost due to inefficiency in fertilizer distribution.
-- Rp 2.61 billion was lost due to overstocking of urea tablets.
-- Rp 11.94 billion was lost due to excess payments of subsidies for urea tablets.
-- Rp 654.24 million was lost in excess payments to PT Ariyo Seto Wijoyo (the politically well connected company assigned by the government to process granular urea into urea tablets).
-- Rp 1.35 billion was lost due to overpricing of school textbooks.
-- Rp 2.1 billion was lost due to overstocking of school textbooks.
State losses caused by irregularities were also found in the state fertilizer company, PT Pupuk Sriwijaya; state farming company, PT Sang Hyang Seri; state pharmaceutical companies, PT Kimia Farma, PT Indofarma and PT Bio Farma; state aviation company, PT Angkasa Pura I and II; state hotels, Hotel Indonesia, Hotel Wisata Indonesia, Ambarrukmo Palace Hotel, Natour Simpang, Natour Bath Tretes, Natour Dharma Deli and Natour Parapat; and PT Patra Jasa, the property arm of state-owned oil company, PT Pertamina.
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Wahono, said the government should increase its efforts to lift more people from absolute poverty.
He said the government was making serious efforts with its aid program for the least-developed villages.
He said that in the 1996/1997 fiscal year, the government had allocated Rp 479.8 billion in aid under the program to 22,054 of the country's least-developed villages.
"The aid is expected to help villages sustain their development," he said. (pwn)