Telkom ordered to pay dividends
Telkom ordered to pay dividends
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The government said on Wednesday it would require all publicly
listed state-owned companies, including telecommunication firm PT
Telkom, to pay their annual dividend to the state coffers in
accordance with the regulations, and warned of sanctions for
those who failed to comply.
Ministry of Finance Director General of Financial Institutions
Darmin Nasution, said that unless the companies could prove they
were having liquidity problems, they should all pay their
dividend to the government within one month at the latest after
the company's shareholders' meeting.
"That's what the regulations say. Otherwise, a penalty will be
imposed on them, such as a monthly fine of two percent of their
total obligation," Darmin said on Wednesday on the sidelines of a
meeting with the House of Representatives Commission IX on
financial affairs.
In its annual shareholders' meeting last week, the board of
directors of the country's largest telecommunication firm asked
the government to allow it to make the dividend payments in two
installments.
The issue remained undecided until the end of the meeting.
The government is supposed to obtain 50 percent of the total
profit recorded by the company last year, which is around Rp
2.125 trillion (US$260 million).
As of last year, the company managed to post a 41.2 percent
increase in its audited consolidated net profit to Rp 4.25
trillion, up from Rp 3.01 trillion in 2000. The company's net
income per share also rose to Rp 421.64 from Rp 298.61.
Darmin added the huge profits indicated Telkom was by no means
in financial difficulties.
Meanwhile, in last week's meeting, the government rejected the
company's plan to issue $100 million in bonds as it would raise
Indonesia's corporate debts in dollars. It was feared this could
adversely affect the rupiah in the future.
The government also made significant changes to Telkom's
boards of directors, on the grounds that they were not capable of
running the company.