Councilor threatens Newmont with "people's court"
Thursday, February 17 2000 - 04:00 AM WIB
Members of the North Sulawesi provincial council said Wednesday gold mining company PT Newmont Minahasa Raya would face "people's court" if the allegation that it had tried to bribe the provincial high court was true, Manado Post reported.
"If (the bribery allegation) is true, Newmont Minhasa Raya will face a people's court," councilors Jefferson Rumayar, Max Bule Lumingkewas and Denny Wowiling said.
They made the statement following a rumor that Newmont tried to bribe head of the North Sulawesi provincial court OH Simarmata to annul the provisional ruling of the Tondano district court that ordered Newmont to temporarily suspend its operation in the Minahasa regency.
The bribery allegation thus far remains unclear as Simarmata was earlier quoted by Tempo Interaktif online as saying that he was offered US$7 million, while Suara Karya quoted an official of the high court Eddy Ratulangi as saying on Tuesday that Newmont offered $70 million, but the court rejected the bribe.
Other rumor said the high court had received $30,000 in bribes from Newmont.
But, Rumayar denied the report.
"We have rejected $70 million. How could we accept $30,000," Ratulangi said. (*)