REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- State companies (BUMN) are born to serve as the country's economic locomotive not to monopolize the economy, Achmad Yunus, executive Director of BUMN Institute has said.

Yunus, however, did not deny monopoly by BUMN, saying, any monopoly by BUMN is merely for the national interest as practiced in many other countries.

"Therefore, we do not agree with the view by HIPMI (the Indonesian Association of Young Businessmen) suggesting that state companies are monopolistic. Any monopoly by state companies in certain projects are for national interest to reduce gap and to maintain the concept of welfare nation as formulated by our founding fathers to prevent the influence of neoliberalism," he added.

Yunus said the presence of BUMN proved to provide a solution to various problems citing Pertamina is ready to lose up to Rp12 trillion to carry its mission to create the same price of oil fuel all over the country.

No private company would be prepared to carry such mission, he said, adding if all profitable projects are to be awarded to the private sector, the collective welfare concept would be meaningless.

"Anyone would fight for individualistic welfare and the economic gap would widen," he said.

HIPMI General Chairman Bahlil Lahadalia has accused state companies of being monopolistic saying BUMN hold the contracts for all infrastructure projects .

BUMN hold the contracts for toll road and their subsidiaries supply rock, iron and sand for the project, Bahlil cited.

"Is not it monopolistic?" he queried after attending a discussion forum on "Encouraging the private sector to be more active in infastructure development," here earlier this week.

Achmad Yunus denied BUMN had monopolized big projects of the government, saying the private sector has taken big portion of job in infrastructure development including in the construction of toll roads and power generating facilities.

It is natural that strategic national projects are awarded to state companies in line with the chapter 33 of the 1945 State Constitution, he said.

BUMN represent the state and strengthening BUMN by awarding strategic government projects is a form of state sovereignty, he

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