Fajarasia.co – Deputy chairman of the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) RI Sultan B Najamudin encouraged the Government to reform the arrangement of the subsidized energy distribution system (gas, electricity and fuel) in a precise digital-based manner to the public.
This was conveyed by the Sultan following the Government’s discourse that it would increase the entire compensation subsidy to reach Rp. 350 trillion or 127 percent, above the energy subsidy which currently has reached Rp. 154 trillion.
“If you look at it mathematically, the proposed energy subsidy budget is fantastic in the midst of the 2022 State Budget deficit situation which reaches 840.2 trillion or the equivalent of 4.5% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). We certainly don’t mind if the government has first reformed the system. and the procedure for distributing subsidized energy is precise and on target,” said the Sultan through his official statement on Saturday (21/05).
According to him, so far, energy subsidies have always been misused by the upper middle class. The Ministry of Finance’s 2020 data actually reports that the poorest 40 percent of the population enjoys 36.4 percent of the subsidy budget. But the richest 40 percent of the population enjoys almost 40 percent of the subsidy budget.
“Energy subsidies are certainly needed, but if the intention is only to be oriented towards populism in political policies, subsidies will only become redundant. We hope that the good intentions of protecting people’s purchasing power with subsidies must be carried out through an unbiased and precise distribution mechanism and process with a data system approach. and digital,” said the former Deputy Governor of Bengkulu.
Furthermore, the Sultan explained that the government’s proposed additional energy subsidies tend to be excessive. Such a figure would be a huge burden on the state budget, while at the same time PT PLN, for example, would have to bear the burden of oversupplying electrical energy produced by private power plants.
“Without a precise reform of the energy subsidy distribution system, the additional budget will only be a waste that has the potential to be misused. Unless the government is willing to postpone several mega projects that consume a lot of the state budget, such as the construction of IKN,” he concluded.
It is known, Minister of Finance (Menkeu) Sri Mulyani Indrawati conveyed that the proposed increase in the subsidy budget was carried out so that the price of pertalite, diesel, kerosene, 3 kg LPG and electricity rates was maintained, considering that the economic recovery was still in its early stages and people’s purchasing power was low. not fully recovered.
For information, in the 2022 APBN the value of subsidies and energy compensation is budgeted at Rp. 152.5 trillion.
This figure was later increased to Rp443.6 trillion in order to anticipate price pressures and keep the selling price the same as it is today.
In detail, subsidies for fuel and 3 kg LPG increased from Rp. 77 trillion to Rp. 149.4 trillion. Then, the electricity subsidy rose from Rp. 56.5 trillion to Rp. 59.6 trillion. Furthermore, fuel compensation for pertalite and diesel rose from 18.5 trillion to Rp426.4 trillion.*****
