Ex-Pilot Merpati Ngadu To Senayan, DPR Asks Erick Thohir Not To Avoid Paying Salaries And Severance Pay Of A Total Of IDR 312 Billion

Merpati Airlines plane. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

JAKARTA - Dozens of former Merpati Airlines pilots came to complain to the House of Representatives of the Republic of Indonesia, Senayan, Jakarta. They demanded basic rights in the form of salaries and severance pay which the state-owned company had not paid.

As is known, PT Merpati Nusantara Airlines is still in arrears in severance payments for 1,233 former pilots and their employees with a total value of IDR 312 billion. In fact, the company has stopped operating since 2014.

Member of Commission VI of the DPR present, Herman Khaeron, said that his party had received a letter of request for RDPU to Commission VI of the DPR and listened to the reading of an open summons to the Ministry of SOEs so that their rights, especially severance pay, were immediately paid.

"We at the DPR have repeatedly voiced that we must immediately settle our obligations to employees, whether administrative, technical or pilot, because this is the main obligation that must be paid," Herman said in a public discussion entitled 'The Tragic Upcoming of the Ex-Pilot Merpati Who Wasn't Visit After' at the Media Center, Jakarta, Monday, May 30.

Herman asked the Ministry of SOEs under the leadership of Erick Thohir not to avoid the issue of the former Merpati pilot, which has not yet been resolved. According to him, SOE Minister Erick Thohir should resolve this priority issue.

"It's a huge sin, dzalim, hopefully the sin doesn't spread to members of the DPR," he said.

On the same occasion, representatives of former Merpati Pilots Muhammad Masikoer revealed that former Merpati Pilots did not expect external funding, but demanded their basic rights.

"What we expect is my own money, our own money, we have our own salary, we collect the severance pay ourselves, we collect the pension funds ourselves from the pieces," said Masikoer.

Masikoer also admitted that he did not expect the holiday allowance (THR) to be paid. According to him, what is expected to be paid immediately are their salaries and severance pay.

"We didn't even expect that, the THR was not paid, it's okay, but the money I collected from, I'm sorry I entered Merpati in 1974 as a pilot student, I retired in 2019, so the period was around 45 years I was in Pigeons," he said.

In fact, the Asset Management Company (PPA) also did not provide a solution, it even seemed to throw away the body when suing for the Suspension of Debt Payment Obligations (PKPU). With the disbandment of Merpati, the former pilot did not get anything.

Masikoer said that his party had demanded their rights to the Palace, KSP, Komnas HAM, KPK to the DPR, but so far there has been no clear point on the payment of their rights.

"Where else are you going, I don't know, if you want to tell me it doesn't feel good. So we ask the DPR for help on how to find the best solution," he said.

Masikoer explained that not a few former Merpati pilots were seriously ill and aging due to only relying on severance pay. Until now, the government has not provided a solution for the thousands of employees who have not received severance pay.

Previously, on September 30, 2021, Erick Thohir assessed that there was no bankruptcy experienced by PT Merpati Nusantara Airlines (Persero). The main reason is that shareholders will liquidate the state-owned airline, because it has not operated since 2008.

According to him, companies that have not operated for a long time must have their problems resolved. Regarding employee severance pay and Merpati's assets, PT Danareksa (Persero) and PT Perusahaan Pengelola Asset (Persero) or PPA have also handled it.

Pension funds that have been closed have prevented former employees from receiving their pensions, even though during their work their salaries have been deducted for pensions. Meanwhile, the pigeon pension fund has been closed since January 2015, but the former employees who have retired since 2013 did not receive their pension.