The World Bank has exposed corrupt practices linked to three loans for infrastructure projects in Indonesia, cancelling them and demanding millions of dollars in refunds, a report said Saturday.
In a letter to Finance Minister Sri Mulyani, the bank said agreements for loans totalling 1.5 million dollars yet to be disbursed were dropped over alleged bribery in the hiring of consultants, the Jakarta Post reported.
"The bank has found evidence supporting allegations of bribes and the making of other illicit payments in respect of three consulting contracts entered into by the Indonesian government," the bank reportedly said in the letter. The loans were made through the Ministry of Public Works with consultants WSP International Ltd no details were given about the consulting company.
The Indonesian government signed two of the loan contracts for a regional transport project in eastern Indonesia in 2002, and another for a separate roads infrastructure project in 2003 and 2004, the Post reported. The bank has also requested refunds worth a total of some 4.6 million dollars which had already been disbursed under the agreements, according to the English-language daily.
In its letter, the bank said that its integrity department had received allegations from a contractor that WSP had paid bribes worth 356,703 dollars to government employees in connection with the three contracts.
No statements verifying the report appeared on the World Bank's website on Saturday. Indonesia is regularly rated as one of the most corrupt nations in the world, but the government of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has vowed to clean up graft as an incentive to induce much-needed foreign investment.
In May 2005, the World Bank exposed corruption in the implementation of a 203,000-dollar poverty-busting grant in Indonesia and blacklisted five individuals and two firms.
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