Ouch! The Government Debt Migor Trillions to Entrepreneurs, How come?

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – The Business Competition Supervisory Commission (KPPU) revealed that due to the non-implementation of the Minister of Trade Regulation No. 3 of 2022, it is estimated that there will be unpaid bills or difference in payment for cooking oil of IDR 1.1 trillion. This amount is much larger than the previous Rp. 344 billion.

Not only to modern retailers, the parties that have the right to collect the fractional payments are the cooking oil producers and distributors.

“For cooking oil producers and distributors, it is estimated that losses will reach Rp. 700 billion, so for retail it will reach Rp. 334 billion. So the total rafaction bills in January 2022 will reach Rp. 1.1 trillion,” said the Economic Director of the Business Competition Supervisory Commission (KPPU) Mulyawan Ranamanggala at a press conference regarding payments for cooking oil fractions, Wednesday afternoon (10/5/2023).

Mulyawan explained, the price of cooking oil in January 2022 reached more than Rp. 20,000 per liter, so in order to reduce the price increase which was quite significant and fast, the government issued Permendag number 3 of 2022 taking into account the public and national interests.

“So that the price of cooking oil is Rp. 14,000 per liter. This can be achieved by the community. Indeed, in our analysis, the price of Rp. 14,000 was originally a price subsidized by the government, namely taking into account the difference in the economic reference price (HAK) with the highest retail price. (HET). The HAK itself is set at Rp. 17,260,” he explained.

“This is also our record that HAK is below the average price in January 2022, which is IDR 20,914. So this is also quite significant because the difference is almost IDR 3,000,” he continued.

On the other hand, the government has determined that cooking oil at the consumer level is sold at a HET of Rp. 14,000, so there is another difference of Rp. 3,260 from HAK. And it is this difference that, according to Permendag number 3 of 2022, will be paid through BPDPKS funds.

“However, because at that time the policy of Minister of Trade Number 3 of 2022 was changed, this subsidy was no longer valid. Because of Minister of Trade Number 6 of 2022 which replaces Minister of Trade 3 no longer regulates subsidies,” he explained.

Furthermore, Mulyawan conveyed that his party also analyzed that business actors suffered two losses. There was a loss in the economic price of cooking oil, from IDR 20,000 on the market to IDR 17,260. Then the second is the difference between HAK and HET set by the government.

“So we assess that there are 2 times the losses received by business actors. And business actors, we assess that it is in accordance with the regulatory corridor that they ask for this right so that the fractional value is replaced in accordance with Permendag 3 of 2022 through BPDPKS,” he concluded.

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