Pertamina?s boss ready to be replaced
Thursday, January 8 2009 - 02:30 AM WIB
He made the statement on Wednesday in response to calls from several parties for the replacement of the company?s board of directors that they thought had failed to distribute subsidized fuels.
However, a decision to replace Pertamina's board of directors should only be taken by the company?s shareholders in a general shareholders? meeting, Ari said following a meeting with Vice President Jusuf Kalla.
Pressure on Ari and his colleagues to resign has been building after hundreds of gas stations across the country were reported to have lacked fuel during the recent year-end holiday. News reports said President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was disappointed over Pertamina's failure to provide enough fuels during the period.
An industry source told Petromindo.com on Thursday that Susilo was seriously considering sacking Ari after receiving a recommendation from Anas Urbaningrum, a senior politician from his own party Democratic Party.
Ari noted that the fuel shortage during the holiday was actually not as serious as some media have reported.
"Out of the 4,300 gas stations operating across Indonesia, only around 130 or less than 3 percent did not get fuels supply by end of 2008. And of 640 gas stations in Jakarta and surrounding areas, only 57 or 7 percent did not get fuel supplies," he said.
He said some gas stations had deliberately delayed the purchase of the fuel on fear that the government would cut the price of the fuel again. Others have placed orders but they failed to make advance payment -- as such could not get the fuel -- because banks were closed on Dec. 31, 2008. (*)