Sumitro proposes investment trust for cooperatives
Sumitro proposes investment trust for cooperatives
JAKARTA (JP): Senior economist Sumitro Djojohadikusumo
proposed yesterday the funds collected from state enterprises to
help cooperatives and small enterprises be pooled in a trust.
He said the trust could function as a guarantee fund for
cooperatives and small enterprises to buy shares on capital
markets, especially for state firms' initial share offerings.
"This investment trust could prevent conglomerates' bulk
acquisition of shares, especially on state firm privatization,"
Sumitro told the Induk Koperasi Pegawai Republik Indonesia
general assembly, which Sumitro heads.
Minister of Cooperatives and Small Enterprises Subiakto
Tjakrawerdaya opened the assembly meeting yesterday.
Sumitro said the investment trust should be an independent
entity, free of state institutions and departments.
But it must abide the government's rulings, especially those
set by the monetary authority, he added.
"To make this institution live with the spirit of
cooperatives, it should be supervised by the board of trustees
comprising people from monetary, cooperatives and production
sectors," Sumitro said.
To spur the development of cooperatives and small enterprises,
the government has required state firms to set aside up to 5
percent of their profits to help them.
The Ministry of Cooperatives and Small Enterprises provides a
list of cooperatives and small enterprises to state firms and
large private firms interested in helping. The companies are free
to choose which cooperatives and small enterprises to help.
Critics have said this mechanism only benefited the
cooperatives and small enterprises which had direct or indirect
links to state or large private firms.
Sumitro said the development of small enterprises and
cooperatives should be directed toward creating an alternative
economic power to the market which was dominated by
conglomerates.
"In this context, we are 17 years behind Malaysia which has
founded Sharikat Permodalan Nasional Berhad to strengthen the
economic power of the indigenous," Sumitro said.
He said he presented his trust proposal to the government many
years ago, when J.B. Sumarlin was the minister of finance.
"However it was rejected. They said the time was not yet ripe
(to form such an institution)," Sumitro said.
When asked on Sumitro's proposal, minister Subiakto said he
would study it and then discus it with the finance minister and
relevant ministers.
"Actually, the proposal has long been presented (to the
government), but only now does it have clear direction. I have
already got the idea and will discuss it with Mar'ie (Muhammad,
the Minister of Finance)," Subiakto said.
He acknowledged that Indonesia, compared to Malaysia, had been
left behind in improving its indigenous people's economy. But
that was in implementation, not the ruling side, he said.
"Programmed efforts are required to nurture these indigenous
entrepreneurs. We will look into ways to pursue it, and then we
will implement the most suitable one," he was quoted by Antara as
saying. (rid)