"What is important is clear explanation. Certainly the right parties to give the explanation are the Merpati leadership itself and the state enterprises minister at present and when the procurement was made," the president said.
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - The government is checking the airworthiness of MA-60 airplanes in the country, while the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) is also studying a report on alleged price mark up in the purchase of the Chinese-made aircraft.

The examinations on the airplanes followed the crash recently in West Papua of one of the 13 MA-60s purchased by state-owned Merpati Nusantara Airlines from China`s Xian Aircraft International Company (XAC).

Following the accident which killed 27 passengers and crew members, certain quarters have asked that the airworthiness of the plane be checked as there was suspicion the planes lacked quality and were purchased at a marked up price.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono during a cabinet meeting on Thursday called on all ministers concerned to explain to the public about the process of procurement of the Chinese made MA-60 plane.

"What is important is clear explanation. Certainly the right parties to give the explanation are the Merpati leadership itself and the state enterprises minister at present and when the procurement was made," the president said.

He said the public deserved clear explanation regarding the process of procurement of the plane that is now creating a polemic.

Regarding the airworthiness of the plane, Transportation Minister Freddy Numberi said the government has decided to check it and ascertain the plane`s airworthiness in order to ensure the safety of their use in the future.

"We have issued letters ordering an inspection and safety audit on the 12 MA-60 airplanes," Freddy Numberi told the press. He said that the inspection on the airworthiness of the 12 MA-60s was done by a team formed by the ministry of transportation. It will work for one week to check the 12 MA-60s airplanes.

During the inspection, the operation of the 12 MA-60s would be managed in such away so that it would not disturb flight services. At present, the 12 planes are serving 66 routes most of which are Indonesian eastern regions.

If in the examination process, the team found matters which could threaten or endanger flights, the plane concerned would be grounded.

State Enterprises Minister Mustafa Abubakar agreed that the plane would not be grounded and asked Merpati to operate them because based on their technical specification they were declared airworthy.

"As the regulator of Merpati and holder of its major shares, we do not ban MA-60 to fly. Please fly because we believe MA-60s meet the technical airworthiness requirement," Minister Mustafa Abubakar said.

Yet, he acknowledged that at first, he was thinking to ground the planes. "At the beginning I thought the planes should be grounded on the reason of passenger safety. But after discussing it with the transportation minister I found that the planes are fit to fly," he said.

Earlier President Director of PT Merpati Nusantara Airlines, Sardjono Jhony Tjitrokusumo said he was ready to resign if it is proven that the crash of Merpati MA-60 in Kaimana Bay, Papua, on Saturday (May 7), was the result of technical reasons.

"MA-60 was in a save condition. But if it has been proven that the crash was due to technical errors I am ready to resign," he said. He made the statement in response to inquiries from some circles that the MA-60 plane built by Xian China Air Craft lacked quality.

Apart from the airworthiness of MA-60 planes, the public also alleged that the price of the plane had been marked up.

The United Workers Union Federation of State Companies has reported that there was an alleged mark up in the purchase of the planes. Spokesman of the United Workers Union Federation, Tri Sasono said his organization has reported the alleged mark up to the KPK.

"There is an indication of mark up done to enrich either individuals or others by certain people," Tri Sasono said on Thursday.

He said that the alleged mark up involved a government official and a lawmaker. Sasono said that with the intervention of a broker (MS), Merpati purchased the plane with a price of US$14.6 million per unit, while actually the contract could be concluded at a price of US$174 million for 15 MA-60s.

According to Merpati President Director Sardjono Jhony Tjitrokusumo, Merpati in 2006 made a deal with Xian Aircraft for the procurement of 15 MA-60 planes, in which the Indonesian government asked for a loan of 1.8 billion reminbi (yuans), the equivalent of Rp2.1 trillion which was handed to Merpati as payment for the aircraft.

In 2007, Merpati received only 2 units of MA-60 planes under a lease. Then in December 2010 another 11 units had been approved in the 2010 State Budget.

The remaining 2 units were scheduled to come to Indonesia on May 19 and 20, 2011.

But Mustafa Abubakar said that in the contract signed by XAC and Merpati the price per unit of the plane was US$11.206 plus optional equipment worth US$800,000 so that the price was US$12.2006 million per unit.

Now, the report on alleged mark up in the price of the planes is now being studied by the anti-graft commission.

Spokesman of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) spokesman Johan Budi said the anti-graft body had already received a report about the purchase of the planes and "we are now still studying it." (*)

Reporter: By Andi Abdussalam
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2011