Deputy Minister of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) Kartika Wirjoatmodjo, suspected that the managements of PT Waskita Karya Tbk (WSKT) and PT Wijaya Karya Tbk (WIKA) might have manipulated their financial reports for years.
According to Kartika, these two state-owned enterprises (BUMNs) claimed to be profitable while having negative cash flow. “Maybe they need to restate their financial statements because they are not realistic,” Kartika said on Monday (5/6).
Kartika stated that the government will impose sanctions on the directors and commissioners of Waskita Karya and Wijaya Karya if they are proven to have manipulated financial reports. The sanctions will also be more severe because the two state-owned companies are listed on the capital market.
Wijaya Karya and Waskita Karya deny allegations
Regarding this issue, both Wijaya Karya Corporate Secretary Mahendra Vijaya and Waskita Karya VP Corporate Secretary Ermy Puspita claimed the companies’ financial statements have been made in line with regulations and were audited by an independent public accounting firm.
Referring to Indonesia Stock Exchange data, Waskita Karya has been relying on the services of public accounting firm Kosasih, Nudiyaman, Mulyadi, Tjahjo, and partners since 2021.
However, in February this year, the license of that public accounting firm, which is also a member of Crowe Horwath International, was revoked by the OJK.
OJK takes action to assess financial reports
Executive Head of Capital Market, Derivatives, and Carbon Exchange Supervision at Indonesia’s Financial Services Authority (OJK) Inarno Djajadi stated that the OJK is currently conducting a further examination regarding the findings.
“We are conducting an assessment of the Waskita Karya and Wijaya Karya financial reports, and we cannot yet declare any fraud. We are still investigating the violations, and appropriate actions will be taken in accordance with the applicable regulations,” Inarno said, during a virtual press conference on Tuesday (6/6).
Tracing the past cases of financial manipulation at Waskita Karya
Manipulating financial statements is not a new case in the management of Waskita Karya. In 2009, the SOEs Ministry suspended two directors and one former director of Waskita Karya due to excess recording of IDR 400 billion in net profit in the company’s 2004-2007 financial statements,
The government also requested the Capital Market and Financial Institution Supervisory Agency, which was the authority before OJK, to impose sanctions in public accounting firms that were involved in these financial engineering practices.
The latest manipulation case at Waskita emerged following investigations conducted by the Attorney General’s Office and the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) in 2022 related to fictitious projects involving Waskita Karya’s subcontractors and their subsidiaries.
Last May, the Attorney General’s Office identified Waskita Karya’s President Director Destiawan Soewardjono, along with several directors, managers, and contractors, as suspects in a corruption case involving the misappropriation of funds from Waskita Beton Precast between 2016 and 2020.
It is believed that cases such as this have contributed to the significant financial burden faced by Waskita Karya for years.
