Lapindo fails in making compensation payments to mudflow victims

Sidoarjo, NU Online
The planned disbursement of the compensation advance payments to the Lapindo Brantas Inc mudflow victims on Monday afternoon had failed as the result of slow handing over of the case documents of the residents by the verification team of the Sidoarjo Mudflow Handling Agency (BPLS) to Lapindo.

PT Minarak Lapindo Jaya as subsidiary of Lapindo Brantas, on Monday afternoon paid an accommodating fund of Rp 100 billion to Bank Mandiri and BNI to be used as advance compensation payments to the victims.<>

While the BPLS verification team had finished processing and declared the 44 land ownership certificates of the victims to have passed the verification, until Monday none of the certificates had been submitted by the BPLS verification team to PT Minarak Lapindo Jaya.

Vice President of PT Minarak Lapindo Jaya Andi Darussalam said that the handing over of the accommodating fund to the two state banks had been ordered by the President in a meeting between the head of state and BP2LS, Sidoarjo administration authorities and PT Minarak Lapindo Jaya on June 25, 2007.

Antara reported, under the presidential instruction, PT Minarak Lapindo Jaya is required to keep an accommodating fund of Rp 100 billion on every Sunday to make the advance compensation payments to the mudflow victims.

Andi said that right now the payment of the compensation advance payments depend on the BPLS verification team. PT Minarak Lapindo Jaya will disburse all the money in accordance with all the certificates that had passed the verification. (dar)