Tuesday, January 23, 2007

A little chat with AL CAPONE

I got a surprise email from someone unepected, Alphonse Capone (born Jan 17, 1899) from a place far far away he described as a "cool, with wireless internet service" place. He declined to mention exactly whether the place is hell or heaven. "I can't tell you. But the place I live has been connected with WWW. I read your blog everyday for hell sake!"

"Hi Al, it's been a long time since the last time we met. You left this WWW exactly 60 years ago, January 25 I guess. Tell me what's happened since then in your new mansion!"
"I'm fine man. I'm too old to do business, so I dedicated most of my time & energy for phylantrophy things," Al said.
"Cool! Do your place looks like Florida where you live sometimes or Chicago where you identified with the crimes?"
"It's a bit of combination of winter in Chicago and hot summer days in Florida."
"Wow. Must be lots of fun, having fun with the money you collected for so many decades."
"Yeah, I donated some to universities so they could have better education than mine. I gave scholarships to journalists too! Oh, do you know that I have one professorship under my name in a respected university in US?"
"I heard that, Al. You're generous! How's the business?"
"I'm not dealing with gambling anymore or liquors. As you see, my businesses are clean. We cut forests, process them to pulp and then paper for your kids' school book & notes or your newspaper. We then cultivate palm trees all over the already cleared areas to produce cooking oil. See, your fellow citizens fond of fried foods."
"Good for you!"
"Lot's of changes in the last 60 years, thanks to globalization. I have global operation now. But again, none of them involved in gambling or drugs."
"Your family?"
"My first daughter has just graduated, cum laude, from Wharton School. Her younger sister is studying there too."
"How about the boy?"
"He's in charge of my business in Great Wall."
"What business?"
"We're producing & selling paper and cooking oil."
"Do they have palm oil plantations there?"
"No, you're moron! Palm oil is tropical tree!"
"Sorry Al. So, where do you get the materials?"
"From your country. In fact I have the largest plantation in Sumatra. You have to see someday. Sorry, can we hold a second? I need to go to the restroom."
"By the way, if you're born again, will you do different things?"
"Well, most likely I'll have similar friends. I'll work for guys like Torrio. I might still kill Bugs Moran. But I will not hire Eddie O'Hare so I don't have to stay behind the bars for seven years! I could enjoy my old age in Florida, spend more of my money to finance research on penicilin!"
"What things that you regret the most?"
"For my failure to ask legislators & congressmen to freeze IRS!"
"I guess you guys have no IRS over there?"
"Actually I run a lucrative business here, in your world might be considered illegal."
"What's that?"
"I run a blog, porn blog! I just posted real porn like ME-YZ. I have gambling blog as well, looks like London Casino if you ever visit that."
Ok Al, I'm tired already. Let's chat again tomorrow. Send my regards to Mr Torrio and Lucky Luciano. Ciao!

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Tuesday, January 16, 2007

Sukanto tax evasion: An expanded investigation

Tax office has established a team to probe alleged tax manipulation (evasion) at Asian Agri Group owned by Indonesia's richest man (Forbes list) Sukanto Tanoto. The team will work hand-in-hand with Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and Financial Transaction Authority (money laundering watchdog), Koran Tempo reported today. Go for it! Sukanto replied: Catch Me if You Can!

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Thursday, March 09, 2006

Freeport Debacle: Money Talks

Kompas published a very good photograph of Amien Rais (former Assembly Speaker) holding the shoulder of Ginandjar Kartasasmita (former minister under Soeharto and BJ Habibie regimes). The photo was taken yesterday when Amien paid a courtessy call to Ginandjar, the chairman of Regional Representatives Council (DPD) as part of the former's roadshow to gather support for to shutdown the giant mining operation of PT Freeport Indonesia.
But Amien seems soften his stance yesterday. Instead of shutting down the operation, he echoed Ginandjar's proposal to ask government increase Indonesia's shares in Freeport to 25%. Indonesia government currently holds 9.36% shares of Freeport.
Amien said renegotiating Freeport's working contract, awarded in 1991 when Ginandjar was still the energy and mining minister under Soeharto regime, would give a bigger slice of revenue to Indonesia and Papua people. Sounds good.
How to finance the acquisition of another 16% shares of Freeport at more than US$1.5 billion? Well, for sure government has no money to do that. "But we could buy the shares bit by bit using the divident from Freeport," Ginandjar argues. This logic would need more than 10 years, I guess.
The fastest way, off course, give it to private sector and state-owned enterprises through leverage buy-out, let say. Companies like Bumi Resources and Energi Mega Persada, both are linked to Aburizal Bakrie (close friend of Ginandjar and Amien's favourite PAN Chairman Sutrisno Bachir).
Look at Amien Rais' logic. He said Freeport conducted three crimes. They are environmental problem, tax evasion, and looting.

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