REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Economist Dr Jos Luhukay said State Enterprise Minister Rini Mariani Soemarno would bring state companies to their golden age in four years.
"I can see Rini Soemarno always busy like a CEO of a big corporation," Dr Joe said here on Wednesday.
He said Rini is a professional well versed not only in business but in the bureaucracy and at the same time she is close to the people.
Rini was once chief executive of a number of big corporations, as president director of the country's largest automotive company PT Astra Internasional in 1998-2000 and was trade and industry minister in 2001-2004.
When she was industry and trade minister under President Megawati Soekarnoputri, Rini succeeded in putting an end to large imports of sugar by the country every year.
"For which she was given a high appreciation from sugar farmers in the country, Dr Joe said.
Dr Jos Luhukay said currently Indonesia has 119 state companies operating in various business areas.
"It is not easy to manage so many companies with assets larger than those of holding company Temasek of Singapore and Khazanah Nasional of Malaysia," said Dr Joe who himself has headed a number of big companies including as President Director of PT Bank Lippo Tbk.
He said Rini has given strong foundation for the expansion of the state companies by placing professional managers to manage the companies, and deputies at the ministry.
Jos Luhukay said Rini has shown she had the courage to take a bold decision that could trigger controversy such in her decision to go ahead with the plan to build express train between Jakarta and Bandung without financial support from state budget.
"In order to optimize the contribution of state companies to the country's economic development, the many state companies should put under a holding company like Singapore's Temasek and Malaysia's Khazanah," Dr Joe said.
He said Temasek and Khazanah have in the past several years have acquired a number of big companies in Indonesia and other countries in Asia.
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