Multiple Positions Are Not A Form Of Efficiency And Prone To Conflict Of Interest

JAKARTA - Andi Amran Sulaiman, as Minister of Agriculture and Head of the National Food Agency (Bapanas), is feared to cause a conflict of interest.

Presidential Decree Number 116/P of 2025 dated October 9, 2025 stated that President Prabowo Subianto dismissed Arief Prasetyo Adi from his position as Head of Badanas and appointed Amran as his successor. With this decision, it means that Amran controls two strategic powers at once.

To the media, Minister of State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi explained that the appointment was carried out because the Bapanas function was previously under the Ministry of Agriculture. He emphasized that there was no problem with Amran's concurrent position.

Meanwhile, Amran Sulaiman on the sidelines of the handover of the position tried to explain President Prabowo Subianto's decision to give him the authority of two positions at once, the possibility for efficiency purposes.

"We are only following the orders of our superiors," said Amran briefly.

However, the appointment of this United Development Party (PPP) politician as the Head of Bapanas sparked controversy. agricultural economic observer Khudori assessed that the appointment of Amran would actually cause a conflict of interest.

Meanwhile, Director of the Digital Center of Economic and Law Studies (CELIOS) Nailul Huda said Prabowo's decision to choose Amran as head of the agency added to the long list of cabinet leaders who held concurrent positions.

Minister of State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi's statement that concurrent positions were carried out for the sake of efficiency because the Bapanas function was previously under the Ministry of Agriculture opposed by agricultural economic observer Khudori. This reason, said Khudori, was conceptually and institutionally wrong.

Khudori explained, institutionally, Bapanas was never under the Ministry of Agriculture. Instead, he was designed as a cross-ministerial coordinative institution, similar to the Indonesian Quarantine Agency, a combination of the Agricultural Quarantine Agency and the Fish Quarantine Agency.

"Indeed, it started with the Food Security Agency in the Ministry of Agriculture, but since it was formed through Presidential Regulation 66/2021, it has become a separate institution that actually coordinates other ministries and institutions in the food sector," said Khudori in a statement received by VOI.

Badanas, said Khudori, should have a superbody role in formulating, establishing, and coordinating food policies. This institution is tasked with ensuring the availability, price stabilization, consumption diversity, and national food reserve management.

"This means that Badanas stands above the Ministry of Agriculture, not below it. If the head of the coordinating institution is actually held by the coordinated minister, how can it be objective?" he said.

By appointing Amran, this decision actually weakens the coordinating position of Bapanas. In practice, the Ministry of Agriculture has an interest in maintaining the welfare of farmers and increasing food production. Meanwhile, Badanas is required to protect consumers from price fluctuations.

"If one person regulates two conflicting interests, it is difficult to avoid policy conflicts," said Khudori.

One example of a conflict of interest that may occur, for example in rice management. In this case, the Ministry of Agriculture encourages the absorption of all quality grain so that farmers are protected, while Badanas must reduce prices so that people's purchasing power is not disrupted.

These two interests often clash. If the officials are the same, who guarantees the decisions taken are not in favor," he said.

Meanwhile, the Director of Digital Economy CelIOS Nailul Huda assessed that the appointment of Minister of Agriculture Andi Amran Sulaiman as Head of Badanas violated Law Number 61 of 2024 concerning Amendments to Law Noor 39 of 2008 concerning the Ministry of State.

With the decision to appoint Amran as Head of Badanas while he is also serving as Minister of Agriculture, Huda assesses that the current government does not consider laws to violate again and again.

The appointment of Amran violates Article 32 of the law. This article prohibits ministers from holding concurrent positions as state officials, commissioners, or directors of private or state companies, and forbids multiple positions as leaders of organizations financed by the state.

Prabowo's decision to appoint Amran as head of the agency actually adds to the long list of cabinet leaders who hold concurrent positions.

Previously, the Minister of Investment/Head of BPKM Rosan Roeslani was appointed as the Head of the Danantara, while Deputy Minister of Digital Communication Angga Raka served as Head of the Government Communication Agency at the State Palace.

Huda is worried that this concurrent position will cause a conflict of interest because the Bapanas and the Ministry of Agriculture have different functions. Badanas, said Huda, is tasked with coordinating, formulating, and determining supply, price stability, and food insecurity. On the other hand, the Ministry of Agriculture is responsible for increasing domestic food supply.

"How do the Head of Badanas call the minister to sit together regarding this food without any organizational interests," said Huda.

He also warned that food price stabilization policies could be biased against agricultural interests regardless of the consumer side.

When it comes to efficiency, as Amran explained earlier, Khudori said that what was needed was not concurrent positions, but national institutional rearrangement so as not to overlap.

Efficiency, according to Khudori, should not sacrifice accountability and independence of food policy. In matters as large and as wide as food, strong coordination and a clear position are far more important than just the merger of positions," he concluded.