No Need For DMO-DPO, Entrepreneurs Suggest SOEs To Be Responsible For Distribution Of Cheap Cooking Oil

Illustration (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - Entrepreneurs propose to the government to give responsibility in the form of assignments to state-owned enterprises (BUMN) to manage the distribution of cheap cooking oil to the public.

This is a solution so that the price of cooking oil remains cheap when the DMO-DPO regulation is revoked.

Acting Chairman of the Indonesian Palm Oil Board (DMSI) Sahat Sinaga said the solution to keep cooking oil prices at the highest retail price of Rp. 14,000 per liter was to involve state-owned enterprises Bulog and ID Food in distribution.

Furthermore, Sahat said, palm oil industry players will only follow government instructions if the profits are promising.

Therefore, he did not ensure that the price of bulk cooking oil would remain cheap when the DMO-DPO regulation was revoked.

"What the Trade Minister is worried about is that the DMO will be abolished, how is the price for migration to 17,000 community node points, don't give it to the private sector, the private sector has nothing to do with it. The government has Bulog, why doesn't it have a FOOD ID? on CNBC, Monday, July 25.

Sahat suggested that the cooking oil distribution model is like the assignment of Pertamina to distribute fuel oil (BBM). So that the price can be controlled from upstream to downstream.

On the occasion, Sahat admitted that the production of cheap cooking oil did not work for entrepreneurs.

Therefore, according to Sahat, the government can take a role by assigning BUMN to distribute cheap cooking oil, in this case Oilita.

"Sir Okay, I think I knew from the start, the commitments would not work. In front of the Minister, yes. But in hindsight, we already know that it won't work. That's why we propose to treat cooking oil with the Pertamina model," he said.

Meanwhile, member of the Board of Trustees of the Joint Indonesian Palm Oil Entrepreneurs, Gapki Maruli Gultom, said that if the assignment for the distribution of cheap cooking oil was carried out by SOEs, they would still get 100 percent profit.

Moreover, said Maruli, PTPN state plantations have oil palm plantations with an area of more than 300,000 hectares that are ready to harvest and there are still 100,000 hectares that are not yet ripe.

If the area of the garden is calculated, the needs will be met.

"There is no need to subsidize the cost of producing CPO, only Rp. 4,000, the most expensive, Rp. 6,000, processed and then sold for Rp. 14,000 per liter. It is a profit, even 100 percent of PTPN's profit. Although it is different from international prices," said Maruli.

Therefore, Maruli suggested that President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) order PTPN to produce cooking oil so that there is no need for a DMO-DPO regulation.

"So Mr. President just ordered PTPN to be responsible for cooking oil. There is no need for a DMO-DPO policy, it makes you dizzy," he said.