Tosari tells QSAR to replay investment
Tosari tells QSAR to replay investment
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Deputy chairman of the United Development Party (PPP) Tosari
Wijaya has demanded that the recently collapsed agribusiness
company PT Qurnia Subur Alam Raya (QSAR) repay the Rp 5 billion
he has invested in it or otherwise he will sue the company for
bankruptcy.
Tosari's lawyers, the firm of Mahendradatta and Nasrun
Kalianda, said on Tuesday that their client would bring legal
proceedings if the profit-sharing company failed to return the
money.
The company is practically defunct and its president, Ramli
Araby, and other members of its senior management are in custody
facing charges of illegal public fund-raising and embezzlement.
During its operation, QSAR, based in Sukabumi, West Java,
collected about Rp 500 billion from 6,000 investors.
The lawyers said the ongoing negotiations may not be
sufficient to force the management to repay the investors, and
could even cause political problems for Tosari, they added.
"The case is being politicized to discredit Pak Tosari's
position and the United Development Party (PPP). This cannot be
ignored," Mahendradatta told Antara.
He confirmed that the Rp 5 billion Tosari invested in QSAR
belonged to the Muslim-based PPP, the third largest faction in
the House of Representatives.
Tosari, who has been appointed the party's chief organizer for
the 2004 election, said he borrowed the money as a private
individual from his party on Apr. 16, 2002. However, the PPP's
top executives said they were unaware of the loan.
Two days later, Tosari invested the money in the profit-
sharing agribusiness company.
Sources in the PPP told The Jakarta Post that Tosari had come
under fire from many party leaders in local chapters, who
condemned him for allegedly misusing the party's funds.
"They are trying to nail Tosari in this case. He is limiting
his appearances in public, especially before party candidates in
the regions," one source said.
As an investor, Tosari, who is also a House of
Representatives' deputy speaker, had close ties with Ramli and
other top executives in QSAR. Other senior politicians in Jakarta
had similar links, but they have denied any direct involvement
with the company.
Tosari even signed a plaque marking the construction of the
Al-Abror Mosque, built by the company in Sasagaran village in
Sukabumi in January 2001.
Other signatories were Sukabumi regent Maman Sulaeman and
Ramli.
Vice President Hamzah Haz, who chairs the PPP, has proposed
that the government take over QSAR, claiming that the company was
"a legitimate business that needed the government's help". This
is despite the fact that it collapsed due to irregularities and
mismanagement.
Hamzah and People's Consultative Assembly Speaker Amien Rais
were among the senior politicians who visited the company in the
past. Their visits gave the company widespread publicity, thus
allowing it to raise even more funds from the public.