SP/Novy Lumanauw, Jakarta – President Joko Widodo has denied reports that a joint venture between Malaysia's national car manufacturer and a little-known Indonesian company will produce an Indonesian national car.
The comments, made to journalists in Manila on Monday during a state visit to the Philippines, directly contradict a statement posted on the official website of the cabinet secretary last week.
Joko told reporters his attendance at the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Malaysian car manufacturer Proton and the Indonesian company Adiperkasa Citra Lestari (ACL), in Malaysia last Friday, did not mean any decision on the matter had been made.
He said his visit to the Proton factory in Kuala Lumpur was at the invitation of Malaysian prime minister, Najib Razak, and former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad, who is now chairman of Proton.
Joko said "of course it is too early" to declare the Proton Indonesia's national car and what he had witnessed was a mere business-to-business matter. He declined to elaborate on the relationship between Proton and ACL.
Joko unleashed a torrent of criticism for officiating the signing, which activists and political opponents have pounced on and labeled as yet another concession being made by the president to his party chief.
ACL president director Abdullah Mahmud Hendropriyono, a former intelligence chief and retired Army general dogged by allegations of gross human rights abuses, is known to be close to Megawati Soekarnoputri, Joko's political patron and the chairwoman of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P).
That the president allegedly picked his company – which is not registered with Indonesia's Industry Ministry and whose history and line of business remain unknown – to represent Indonesia in the joint venture left many Indonesians flabbergasted.
Joko emphasized he had not decided to make the Proton Indonesia's national car. "I have to see the results of the study and what target should be achieved," Joko said. He reiterated that Indonesia was very open to foreign investment, including from Malaysia.
Source: http://thejakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/news/jokowi-denies-decision-made-national-car-program/