RI’s wealthiest prove smoking is good for some

Indonesia’s tobacco kings have topped this year’s rich list, with the country’s oil, construction and energy tycoons coming in a close second.

According to Globe Asia’s list of the archipelago’s richest entrepreneurs, due to be released Tuesday, Budi Hartono of the Djarum group, Rachman Halim of the Gudang Garam group and Putera Sampoerna are worth respectively $4.2 billion, $3.5 billion and $2.2 billion.

Chief welfare minister Aburizal Bakrie of Bakrie Group is worth $1.05 billion, oil tycoon Arifin Panigoro of Medco Energy is worth $900 million and media baron Hary Tanusoedibjo is valued at $820 million.

The top 150 list of business men and women is calculated by estimating the value of the companies they are known to own and run, said Shoeb Kagda, associate publisher of the monthly magazine.

"These are guestimates according to a methodology that has been proven and tested," he said, referring to the method used by the U.S.-based Forbes business magazine.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla, also a successful businessman, is ranked 83rd on the list, with $125 million.

Publisher Rizal Ramli said the Globe Asia 150 is published to encourage greater transparency and good corporate governance within the Indonesian business community.

"The public have the right to know who they are and how they run their businesses," he said.

Rizal said the fact that three tobacco kings still ranked among the top of the list showed the strength of Indonesia’s clove-flavored cigarette industry, as well as the success of their proprietors to diversify into other sectors.

Budi Hartono of Djarum for example has acquired Bank Central Asia and has moved into property, while Putera Sampoerna’s family has sold its stake in the HM Sampoerna cigarette company to American tobacco giant Phillip Morris.

The list also shows which sectors have been producing more wealth and which ones have been producing less, with commodities and natural resources, including timber, falling into the first group and manufacturing largely falling in the second group.

Rizal noted the rise of relative newcomers on the list who were competing with Indonesia’s wealthiest.

He said Hary Tanusoedibjo and Teddy William Katuari of the Wings Group made good examples.

The latest Globe Asia edition will also feature a list of the top 120 wealthiest government officials, using data largely supplied by the Commission for the Eradication of Corruption (KPK), Rizal said.

All government officials are required to submit a list of their assets at the beginning of their term in office.

Among those in the top 10 include Gorontalo governor Fadel Muhammad ($16.64 million), industry minister Fahmi Idris ($9.4 million), central bank deputy governor Bun Bunan EJ Hutapea ($5.93 million) and Jakarta deputy governor Fauzi Bowo ($4.4 million).

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono ranked 39th with $516,897 worth of assets at the start of his term in 2004.

Rizal said the list was based on outdated data and likely to be "heavily under-reported". He declined to elaborate.

Berita terbaru ini bisa jadi akan membuat bangsa Indonesia kecewa. Sebab, kini Candi Borobudur bukan lagi sebagai salah satu dari tujuh keajaiban dunia.

Pada Sabtu, 07 Juli 2007 lalu sebuah lembaga yang digagas oleh Bernard Weber, seorang pengusaha Swiss, telah menetapkan 7 keajaiban dunia yang baru yang terpilih melalui survei online melalui internet. Daftar 7 keajaiban dunia yang baru tersebut adalah Chichen Itza, Meksiko, Christ Redeemer, Brazil, The Great Wall, China, Machu Picchu, Peru, Petra, Jordan, The Roman Colloseum, Italia, dan Taj Mahal, India.

Sejak Januari 2007 lembaga ini  telah menominasikan sebanyak 77 situs mahakarya manusia untuk dijadikan calon 7 keajaiban dunia yang baru. Kemudian berhasil memperpendek menjadi menjadi 21 situs dan sampai akhirnya tepilih 7 situs keajaiban dunia baru dari 100 juta suara yang masuk melalui internet.

Namun, ternyata banyak pihak merasa keberatan dari hasil pemilihan 7 keajaiban dunia baru. Zahi Hawass, ahli sejarah Mesir, mengkritik bahwa daftar baru keajaiban dunia tidak memiliki dasar yang jelas. "Kontes pemilihan keajaiban dunia baru ini tidak memiliki dasar yang kuat karena hanya berdasarkan polling dari orang-orang. Bukan mereka yang menulis sejarah terbentuknya situs-situs ini," demikian penuturan Zahi kepada AFP. Ia juga menambahkan tidak terpilihnya Piramida Giza di Mesir tidak akan mengurangi nilai sejarah dari piramida tersebut, karena Piramida Giza ini adalah satu-satunya keajaiban dunia yang asli.
 
Berbeda dengan Mesir, ribuan masyarakat Meksiko, Peru dan Brazil bersuka cita karena Chichen Itza, Macchu Piccu dan patung Yesus yang menaungi Rio de Janeiro, berhasil masuk ke dalam kategori Seven New Wonder of the World.

Seven wonders of the world adalah 7 situs yang merupakan mahakarya manusia yang ditetapkan UNESCO. Ketujuh situs keajaiban dunia yang pertama ditetap UNESCO adalah Piramida Giza, Taman gantung Babilonia, Kuil Artemis, Patung Zeus, Moseleum Halikarnasus, Kuil Rhodes dan Mercusuar Alexandria. Namun karena perang, bencana alam atau sudah sangat tua, maka hampir semua situs tersebut telah rusak. Sampai saat ini hanya Piramida Giza adalah satu dari 7 keajaiban dunia asli yang masih utuh berdiri. Latar belakang inilah yang kemudian mencetuskan ide untuk memilih 7 situs keajaiban dunia baru.

Pengumuman ini dilakukan di Stadium of Light, Lisbon, Portugal. Disiarkan ke 170 negara dan dihadiri oleh segenap orang ternama, tidak tertinggal selebritis seperti aktor Inggris Ben Kingsley, aktris peraih Oscar Hillary Swank.