TEMPO.CO, Jakarta Washington - Coordinating Minister for Marine Affairs Luhut Binsar Panjaitan denied the statement delivered by House of Representatives (DPR) Deputy Speaker Fahri Hamzah. Luhut asserted that the International Monetary Fund-World Bank (IMF-WB) meeting has been planned for the last three years and Indonesia was chosen as the host in September 2014 or before President Jokowi`s administration.
Earlier, Fahri Hamzah stated that the government manipulated the budget allocated for the construction of new DPR building to be used for funding the IMF-WB annual meeting. “As the committee, I emphasize that the accusation is insignificant,” said Luhut to Tempo in Washington DC, United State, Thursday, April 19.
Read: DPR Plans to Build Apartments for Parliament Members
and: Finance Minister Sri Mulyani to Attend IMF-WB Spring Meeting
Luhut currently attends the International Monetary Fund-World Bank (IMF-WB) Spring Meeting in Washington DC, with Finance Minister Sri Mulyani. The IMF-WB spring meeting will discuss Indonesia’s preparedness in hosting the upcoming IMF-World Bank Meeting in Nusa Dua, Bali on October 12-14.
Luhut claimed there are many parties interested to come to Indonesia and make an investment, thus he asked the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) to calculate the financial impact following the meeting. “So, don’t recklessly make an accusation without seeing the fact,” he added.
Furthermore, Luhut appealed the Development Finance Comptroller (BPKP) to audit the budget allotted for 2018 IMF-WB to avoid further suspicion or manipulation of the funds.
WAHYU MURYADI | LANI DIANA
