Waiting For The State To Charge 48 BLBI Obligors

JAKARTA - Through the Task Force for Handling the Rights of the Bank Indonesia Liquidity Assistance Fund or the BLBI Task Force, the government will immediately collect debtors for Bank Indonesia Liquidity Assistance (BLBI) in 1998. The government will do its utmost to hunt down the obligors' assets, including those abroad, by inviting Interpol to help.

After holding a meeting with the BLBI Task Force, the Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs (Kemenkopolhukam) Mahfud MD held a press conference at the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Office, Medan Merdeka Barat Street, Central Jakarta. He said the government will immediately collect the BLBI obligor or debtor. The obligor received assistance in 1998 as an economic stimulus.

"The government disbursed funds for the BLBI, for 48 obligors. So at that time. There were already those that were billed, some were paid off, and so on, we will inform the public later. Who will be paid off," Mahfud said as quoted from Kemenkopolhukam RI YouTube, Thursday, April 15.

Meanwhile, for BLBI obligors who are also controlling shareholders of Bank Dagang Nasional Indonesia (BDNI), Sjamsul Nursalim has two types of debt to be borne. Mahfud ensured that Sjamsul, who is now in Singapore, would be billed because the amount he borrowed was quite a lot.

"Sjamsul Nursalim has two types of debt, one is Dewaruci's bank and then there is BDNI. So it will be billed. So, Sjamsul Nursalim has Bank Dewaruci and BDNI. It will be collected," said the former Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court (MK).

Mahfud detailed the total collection that must be made and that the government has succeeded in calculating in relation to this BLBI fund that has exceeded Rp. 110 trillion rupiah. Or if it is detailed as much as Rp. 110,454,809,645,467.

Mahfud said that initially, the calculation of BLBI obligor debt to the state had three versions, namely RP. 108 trillion, RP. 109 trillion, and RP. 110 trillion. According to him, the latest calculation was strengthened by the explanation of the Minister of Finance (Menkeu) Sri Mulyani regarding the details of the assets of the BLBI obligors that could be collected immediately.

"Earlier the Minister of Finance (Sri Mulyani) had aired the money to be billed for credit assets, in the form of shares, in the form of property, in the form of rupiah and in the form of savings, in the form of foreign money savings, and so on," he said.

Will invite Interpol and take the assets hostage

Through a task force formed by Presidential Decree (Keppres) No. 6/2021, the government will also make maximum efforts to hunt down assets belonging to the obligor or debtor. Including, a number of assets located abroad.

"Between countries, we can use extradition or punishment, Interpol. Earlier, the Minister of Justice and Human Rights (Yasonna Laoly) has stated that we use this method," said Mahfud.

Not only that, the government will carry out gijzeling or hostage-taking of bodies in the civil sphere. "We are considering gijzeling steps to pay (debts of the obligator, red)," he explained.

Mahfud added that there are several forms of BLBI obligor bills. Most of them were in the form of credit, reaching RP. 101 trillion.

"Other forms of claims include property which reached Rp. 8 trillion, then some are in the form of foreign currency accounts so that the calculation can change, some are in the form of shares, so there are six categories of various kinds," said Mahfud.

Why only now?

Several steps have been taken by the government to resolve this civil case. However, many parties consider this to be done too late.

Mahfud also explained, the reason why the government is only now pursuing assets of BLBI obligors or debtors. There are two reasons he put forward and one of them is because the current government is just running.

"Now there are those who ask, why didn't the government just act? The answer is easy because we have just become the government," Mahfud said in a press conference after the BLBI Task Force meeting which was broadcast on the YouTube account of the Indonesian Ministry of Political, Legal and Security Affairs, Thursday, April 15.

He then explained that this case did happen and always received handling from the previous administration and even involved three previous presidents. "One is Mr. Harto (2nd President of the Republic of Indonesia Soeharto) created and formed IBRA," he said.

"Then Mr. Habibie (RI 3rd President BJ Habibie) implemented BLBI in 1998, and Mrs. Mega (RI 5th President Megawati Soekarnoputri) who issued an SKL in 2004. Everything is true, there is no penalty," added this former Chief Justice of the Court Constitution (MK).

The second reason, said Mahfud, was that this collection had just been carried out because previously there were still criminal cases in progress. The purpose of the criminal case is the alleged corruption in the issuance of a Certificate of Settlement (SKL) which is handled by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and finally terminated with the issuance of an Investigation Cessation Order (SP3).

"If (the government, red) acts, then there is a penalty, right? Well, now there are no criminal cases," said Mahfud.

"So based on April 2021 (the issuance of the SP3 BLBI case, red), there are no more cases. Now, because the SP3 government then formed a collection task force then and the bill was large," he concluded.