BPK TO COMPLETE BANK CENTURY AUDIT THIS YEAR

Jakarta, Oct 31 (ANTARA) - The State Audit Board (BPK) hopes to complete its investigative audit on Bank Century this year, BPK chairman Hadi Purnomo said.

"Hopefully, the investigative audit on Bank Century will be finished before the end of this year," Purnomo said after attending the 63rd anniversary of Finance Day here on Friday.

He said the board was now working to complete the last phase of its audit on Bank Century, particularly with regard to the disbursement of the bank's funds.

"We are now working to complete a report on the fund transfers," he added.

When asked whether there were parties that had tried to hamper the investigation, Purnomo said there were not. "We have not yet completed collecting data on the fund transfers and neither have we completed our interviews," he added.

Questioned who was going to be interviewed again, the BPK chairman said it was the auditors who knew about it. "The auditors who know this. I myself do not," he added.

The House Commission XI on financial affairs last August 2009 asked BPK to carry out an investigative audit on the bailing out of Bank Century.

The House was of the view that the disbursement of funds amounting to Rp6.7 trillion by the Deposit Insurance Agency (LPS) was too big while the House had only approved Rp1.3 trillion.

A preliminary report to the House by the State Audit Board (BPK) also indicated that crimes had been committed in the Bank Century case.

Indications of criminal offenses in the Bank Century case were revealed during a closed-door meeting of the DPR's Commission XI for financial affairs on Sept. 29, 2009. The House found that various banking crimes had taken place with the bank.