Tanri supports controversial EGP agreement

JAKARTA (JP): Former Bank Bali president Rudy Ramli testified on Wednesday that Tanri Abeng, the then state minister of investment and state enterprise development, had warned him not to cancel the banks' controversial agreement with PT Era Giat Prima (PT EGP).

Rudy testified before the Central Jakarta District Court, which is hearing the case against Bank Indonesia governor Sjahril Sabirin, that on May 26, 1999 he called Djoko S. Tjandra, one of the owners of PT EGP, who had promised to help him reclaim loans owed by several closed-down and taken-over banks from the Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (IBRA).

Djoko, however, was angry, saying he had worked hard with Tanri to make the plan work. Tanri, who was with Djoko, took the phone and warned Rudy not to cancel the agreement, Rudy said.

Rudy told the court that Bank Indonesia, the central bank, disbursed Rp 904 billion (US$95.1 million) of IBRA funds in repayment of Bank BDNI debt to Bank Bali on June 2 1999. Bank Bali then transferred Rp 504 billion of the money to PT EGP.

Sjahril is being tried for allegedly ordering one of his directors, Erman Munzir, sometime between February 1999 and June 1999, to disburse the money to Bank Bali.

Rudy said that Djoko first contacted him early in October 1998, offering to help after Bank Bali had failed to persuade Bank Indonesia to disburse IBRA funds in repayment of the Bank BDNI debt.

"At that time, I just knew Djoko S. Tjandra by name, he was from the Mulia group. A few days, later I met Djoko and he told me that he wanted to buy the debt owed to Bank Bali by Bank BDNI," Rudy explained.

He said Djoko asked him on Feb. 11 to send a Bank Bali official to a meeting in the Hotel Mulia, which was to be attended by high ranking officials from Bank Indonesia and IBRA.

Rudy sent Bank Bali director Firman Sutjahya to the meeting. Rudy said Firman later reported that the meeting was attended by Djoko, Sjahril, Tanri, former head of the Supreme Advisory Council A.A. Baramuli, a former deputy chairman of IBRA, Pande N. Lubis, businessman Setya Novanto, and Irvan Gunardwi.

Rudy said Firman also told him that Bank Indonesia would soon process the disbursement of the IBRA funds to Bank Bali.

The South Jakarta District Court last year exonerated Djoko and Lubis from all charges. (01)