Bigshots and Brokers

The role played by House of Representatives (DPR) Speaker Setya Novanto in seeking to divvy up shares of Freeport Indonesia is irrefutable. The recording played out at a hearing of the DPR ethics council cleared up any previous confusion on the subject.

Setya, accompanied by oil trader Muhammad Riza Chalid, met with Freeport Indonesia CEO Maroef Sjamsoeddin on June 8 at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Jakarta. The speaker was clearly out of place, as he was unauthorized to determine how Freeport's shares should be divested or broker an extension to the company's contract or to determine how Freeport's shares should be divested. Even if his excuse was to seek information on the process of selling the shares, he should have stuck to parliamentary procedures.

December 8, 2015