Hundreds of parishioners, along with priests and nuns, took to the streets to protest alleged “missing parish funds” to the tune of 28.5 billion rupiah (about US$1.7 million) from an Indonesian state-owned bank’s branch in North Sumatra province.
Members of the St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Aek Nabara in Rantau Parapat, the capital of Labuhan Batu Regency, held demonstrations outside the Indonesia State Bank (Bank Negara Indonesia, BNI) branch on Jalan Ahmad Yani street on March 12.
Branch Head Muhammad Kamel met with the priests and representatives of the congregation and later assured the protesters that the bank would restore 7 billion rupiah to the parish account by March 30.
“The bank will also verify and make the rest of the payments,” he assured.
Father Yonas Sandra Mallissa, parish priest of the St. Francis of Assisi Parish, which falls under the jurisdiction of Medan archdiocese, said bank officials provided no adequate explanation for the funds' disappearance.
“We learned about the embezzlement of our parish funds about 18 days ago,” the priest from the Francis Xavier Foreign Mission Society (SX) noted, while explaining that the funds were accumulated through “congregational cooperative savings, collected gradually by members and through other church initiatives.”
Mallissa said the parish members suspected the funds were “embezzled by the BNI’s Aek Nabara management.”
This came as a shock to the small parish of 4,830 members, he said, while adding that the members then decided to hold demonstrations at the bank’s branch.
His colleague, Father Ino, who identified himself by a single name, said: “The deposited funds disappeared gradually, and we only learned about it at the end of February.”
Ino said the parish has sought “a more complete chronology of the missing funds” from the bank officials.
The parish leaders, though, agreed to wait for the fulfilment of the assurance given by Branch Head Muhammad Kamel.
However, they would also consider “legal options, if necessary,” Ino added.
A protester, who requested anonymity, said the bank official’s assurance gave “a sense of relief,” but added the parishioners will continue to “demand accountability.”
“We are satisfied at the moment, but will yet be vigilant,” he stressed.
The Catholic Church in rural North Sumatra has pioneered cooperatives, which typically support farming, education, and health among the poor communities.
The cooperatives focus on economic empowerment, social support, and disaster recovery, often through local diocesan efforts, lay organizations, and religious orders.