Photo: The Jakarta Post
Welfare minister tops Indonesian rich list: Forbes
JAKARTA (AFP) — Indonesia’s welfare minister and his family, under fire for their company’s role in an oozing mud volcano that has displaced thousands, has topped Forbes Asia’s 2007 Indonesia rich list, the magazine said Thursday.
Aburizal Bakrie and his family saw their net worth blow out to 5.4 billion dollars this year, up from 1.2 billion dollars in 2006 when they were sixth on the list, according to the title’s December 24 edition.
The largest contributor to their wealth gain came from surging stock prices in Bakrie Group’s largest holding, coal producer Bumi Resources, it reported.
Bakrie has faced sustained criticism over the role his part-owned company Lapindo Brantas played in triggering the mud volcano in Sidoarjo, East Java, which began spurting in May 2006 during exploratory gas drilling by Lapindo.
While many experts say the company’s negligence led to the flow, Lapindo maintains that it was caused by a nearby earthquake.
Some 10,000 victims have been told to accept compensation from Lapindo for their land, with no payout for other losses such as houses and material goods. …> read full article here
