T

he Palu State Administration Court (PTUN Palu) ruled on Tuesday in favor of the local administration in a dispute with six mining companies, upholding a regulation that has reduced their concession areas.

The six nickel miners filed a lawsuit against a Central Sulawesi administration decree dated May 16 that reduces the area of their concessions by revising their mining licenses (WIUP).

The companies that filed the lawsuit are PT Bintang Delapan Wahana, PT Morindo Bangun Sejahtera, PT Persadatama Inti Jaya Mandiri, PT Daya Inti Mineral, PT Daya Sumber Mining Indonesia and PT Artha Bumi Mining.

The concessions of the companies overlapped each other, as well as with the concession of PT Hengjaya Nickel Utama.

“I revised the WIUP because of overlapping mining areas,” Central Sulawesi Governor Longki Djanggola told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.

Longki’s lawyer, Errol Kimbal, said the decree was issued based on a finding by a Home Ministry investigative team on the overlapping mining areas and the utilization of natural resources in Morowali regency.

The finding was stated in a letter sent by the ministry to the governor on June 3, 2015, that advised the governor to address the matter.

“It was because the governor issued the decree on the reduction of mining areas that the companies filed a lawsuit at the PTUN,” said Errol, adding that the lawsuit demanded that the governor repeal the decree.

Errol also said the decree was lawful, did not contradict prevailing laws and was not against the general principles of good governance.

Longki visited the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) in Jakarta on Monday to coordinate on and arrange supervision of the problematic mining licenses.

The governor has revoked a number of problematic mining licenses (IUP) in several regencies in the province. Some companies were found to have overlapping mining areas as borders between them were not clear.

Mining permit issuance has often been problematic in regions, with many regional heads being imprisoned for accepting bribes in return for issuing the permits.

In August, South Sulawesi’s Barru regent Andi Idris Syukur, 60, was sentenced to four years and six months in prison and fined Rp 250 million (US$18,589) for corruption and money laundering.

A panel of judges, presided over by Cakra Alam, at the Makassar District Court found Idris guilty of committing graft as regulated in Article 12 of the 2001 Corruption Law.

The defendant was also found guilty of violating Article 3 of the 2010 Money Laundering Law.

Idris was elected regent for the 2016 to 2021 period.

The court ordered Idris to return a Mitsubishi Pajero Sport car that he had accepted from the Bosowa Corporation.

The car, which has a market price of Rp 350 million, was registered under the name of Andi Mirza Riogi, Idris’ son.