Sutiyoso's wealth amounts to Rp 12b

JAKARTA (JP): City Governor Sutiyoso claimed on Wednesday that he had disclosed all of his wealth which reached Rp 12 billion (US$1.3 million) to the Public Servants' Wealth Audit Commission (KPKPN).

"I have revealed all honestly," Sutiyoso told reporters at City Hall.

Asked about his Cherokee jeep which was excluded from the KPKPN report, he said the jeep belonged to his daughter. "My daughter needs the car to attend her lectures at a university which is located far from home."

He also denied that he had land in Cengkareng area, West Jakarta and planned to build a mall on it.

"That's not my land, if you want you can take it," he said jokingly.

He noted that it was the city administration which planned to build a mall on the site to cater to foreign tourists arriving at nearby Soekarno-Hatta International airport.

KPKPN reported on Tuesday that Sutiyoso's total wealth amounted to Rp 11.931 billion -- Rp 10.09 billion in property and Rp 1.84 billion in currency, -- making the former Jakarta Military commander the richest governor in the country.

The audit commission earlier announced the second richest governor was East Java Governor Imam Utomo with a wealth of Rp 7 billion followed by West Java Governor R. Nuriana with Rp 4 billion.

Aside from the Cherokee jeep, the governor is reported to have three sedans, a Mercedes Benz, a Volvo, and a Mazda, as well as a Willys jeep and two Harley Davidson motorcycles.

Without mentioning the location of his farm, Sutiyoso claimed to have earned Rp 750 million from his 15-hectare farm in 1994, the audit commission reported.

Meanwhile chairman of the Jakarta Government Watch Amir Hamzah questioned the audit commission's report on Sutiyoso since it did not explain how the governor had acquired his wealth.

"Much of his wealth, such as cars and land, was stated as having been procured with his own earnings. But it did not provide further details," Amir said on Wednesday. (jun)