Letter: Sri and the Century debacle

The departure of Finance Minister Sri Mulyani was expected and was bound to happen sooner rather than later.

Maybe she had some issues with some prominent businessmen-cum-politicians, but can only blame herself for giving her opponents an excuse to harass her.

She could not give any plausible explanation for the Bank Century bailout funds exploding from Rp 670 billion (UD$70.5 million) to Rp 6.76 trillion. She and Vice President Boediono (the BI governor when Bank Century was bailed out) just kept repeating, during the parliamentary hearing, that the bailout was necessary to prevent a systemic failure.

But they could not explain why the requirement of funds increased tenfold or why it was estimated at Rp 670 billion in the first place. She had become a political liability, and she had to go as gracefully as possible.

Sri Mulyani may be reform-minded. She may be honest. But she was incapable of handling a simple bank bailout — that is what her record will show.

Sri Mulyani claimed she was fooled by Bank Indonesia about the funds required for the Bank Century bailout. In the World Bank, she will have no one to blame but herself if she takes a wrong decision.

As one of the managing directors of the World Bank, she had better get her act together and not rely on information fed to her, however reliable the source may seem. She will have to do her own research before taking any decision. This is an important lesson for her to take from the Bank Century bailout.

Rajasa
Jakarta