Monday, June 8, 2009
Ticket to Wealth in Indonesia
How a former Indonesian General became an ‘instant’ Mulit-Millionaire
Prabowo Subianto, the running mate of presidential candidate Megawati Sukarnoputri has managed to increase his wealth 160-fold, from Rp 10.1 billion ($1 million) in 2003 to Rp 1.6 trillion today.
No mean feat given Prabowo spent most of his professional career in the military, not in business.
Prabowo’s father, Sumitro Djojohadikusumo, a former trade minister, is acknowledged as Indonesia’s economics guru, while his younger brother, Hashim, is one of the country’s wealthiest businessmen. His brother-in-law, Soedradjad Djiwandono, also happens to be a former governor of the central bank, while Prabowo himself was once married to one of former President Suharto’s daughters, a business player in her own right with assets running into the hundreds of millions of dollars.
Prabowo’s wealth far exceeds that of others in the presidential race, including Jusuf Kalla, who is said to be worth $33 million, and Megawati at $25 million.
Megawati’s husband, Taufiq Kiemas, owns, among other businesses, a string of gas stations that helped his wife build a political career.
Kalla’s running mate, retired four-star Army general and former Armed Forces commander Wiranto, trails in fourth place in the wealth stakes at $8.3 million.
The “poorest” among the candidates is incumbent President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono at $728,000, with his running mate, Boediono, outdistancing him at $2.1 million.
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