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Govt should take stance on officials listed in Panama Papers: NGOs
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Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan talks to journalists at the State Palace on Monday. (Kompas.com/Fabian Januarius Kuwado)
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ctivists from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have urged the government to immediately respond to reports of the existence of state officials in the Panama Papers.
An immediate response is important to prevent unnecessary commotion and public distrust toward the Cabinet of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, said Setara Institute chairman Hendardi.
At least two high profile figures, head of the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) Harry Azhar Aziz and Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Luhut Pandjaitan, are among 800 Indonesians listed in the Panama papers.
"His inclusion [in the Panama Papers] has the potential to degrade the credibility of Jokowi's administration," Hendardi said in reference to Luhut in a statement retrieved by thejakartapost.com on Monday.
The Panama Papers leaked information about more than 214,000 offshore companies associated with Panamanian law firm and corporate services provider Mossack Fonseca.
Jokowi summoned both Harry and Luhut to the Presidential Palace to clarify their positions.
According to investigative reports from Tempo, Harry is recorded as the owner of Sheng Yue International Limited, a company established in the British Virgin Islands, a known tax haven.
He signed up as the sole director of Sheng Yue in early 2010 with the help of Mossack Fonseca. He held the position as chairman of the House of Representative's budgetary board at the time.
Meanwhile, Luhut's name is recorded as a director of Mayfair International Ltd, registered in the island country of Seychelles. The offshore company was established on June 29, 2006, with two companies, namely PT Persada Inti Energi and PT Buana Inti Energi, a subsidiary of the energy and plantation firm PT Toba Sejahtera, which was established by Luhut in 2004.
While Harry has acknowledged that his name is listed in the documents and has directly reported to the President and the director general of taxation, Luhut has denied his involvement in Mayfair, saying that he has never heard of it.
According to Hendardi, Harry should resign from his position as chairman to save the audit agency, and Jokowi should probe the details of Luhut's alleged involvement in offshore companies.
Separately, Wahyu Dhaytmika, a senior journalist from Tempo, the only Indonesian media outlet involved in the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), said public officials should be open and transparent about the assets that they own.
"This complex financial structure makes it possible to do anything in secrecy and this has happened for years," Wahyu added.
The ICIJ investigation discovered that nearly 215,000 companies and 14,153 clients are tied to Mossack Fonseca, including politicians and business people who have kept their wealth offshore for years.
Even though the practice is generally legal, such financial arrangements can be misused for committing illegal practices such as evading tax or money laundering. (bbn)
