Poltak: Don’t Use President’s Name to Hold Goods Already Declared Safe

JAKARTA, JOURNALARTA.COM – Two laboratory tests, two identical results. Yet 15 containers of ilmenite belonging to PT Putra Prima Mineral Mandiri (PT PMM) remain detained at sea and are being treated as smuggled goods. That is the core of the complaint raised by the company’s legal team on Monday (6/22/2026).

Advocate Poltak Silitonga SH MH, who is representing PT PMM, openly criticized the task force handling the ilmenite export case. He said the series of actions taken by the task force has created serious legal uncertainty and could damage the investment climate.

“Do not let President Prabowo’s name be invoked to justify actions that are not transparent and do not provide legal certainty to the public or business actors. The task force was formed to uphold the law, not to intimidate people,” Poltak told reporters on Sunday (6/21/2026).

Lab Tests Witnessed by the Task Force Still Ignored

Poltak laid out what he described as a troubling chronology. PT PMM had already obtained test results from PT Sucofindo, a government-licensed institution with international standards. Because suspicions remained, the company agreed to a retest by the Customs laboratory, this time witnessed directly by the task force, the Bangka Belitung Prosecutor’s Office, Pangkalpinang Customs, Sucofindo, and PT PMM itself.

The result was identical. No difference.

“If the test result witnessed by the task force itself is considered invalid, then which result is valid?” Poltak asked. He posed the question publicly without receiving an official answer from those handling the case.

Poltak’s statement came amid news that the Head of Pangkalpinang Customs had been picked up by a team from the Attorney General’s Office. The development further heated up the dispute over how the case is being handled.

Jampidsus Said to Have Failed to Respond Twice

Poltak’s frustration does not stop with the task force. He said the Deputy Attorney General for Special Crimes (Jampidsus) at the Attorney General’s Office twice failed to respond to PT PMM’s formal request for clarification. The company then escalated the matter to the Head of the Presidential Staff Office, retired Army General Prof. Dr. Dudung Abdurachman.

Dudung reportedly tried to arrange a meeting among all related parties. But, according to Poltak, the invitation was not attended by any representative from Jampidsus.

“All we are looking for is legal certainty. If there was an error, show it. If there was a violation, state it. But do not detain the goods, damage the company, destroy its reputation, while the case status and legal basis are never explained openly,” Poltak said.

Losses Near Rp3 Billion, Chinese Buyer Also Demands Answers

The financial impact is real. PT PMM said losses from the container detention have reached nearly Rp3 billion. The figure includes ongoing operational costs, delayed exports, and demands from buyers in China who say they were harmed because shipments were delayed without a clear timeline.

For Poltak, that makes the case more than an ordinary legal dispute. Business reputation, international trade relations, and investor confidence are all being pulled into the conflict.

Calls for Presidential and Parliamentary Oversight

Poltak publicly asked President Prabowo Subianto to evaluate the task force’s performance. He also urged House of Representatives Commission III, the Attorney General’s Office Supervisory Unit (Jamwas), and the Judicial Commission to oversee the handling of the case so no impression arises that the law is being applied selectively.

“The task force was formed by President Prabowo to protect the state, not to make people afraid. A state based on law cannot run on endless suspicion. The law must run on facts, evidence, and procedure,” Poltak said in closing.

As of press time, neither the task force nor Jampidsus at the Attorney General’s Office had issued an official response to the allegations. What is clear is that the 15 ilmenite containers are still being held, and PT PMM’s losses continue to grow by the day.