Improve Public Satisfaction, The Government Issued To Focus On Maintaining Food Price Stability

President Joko Widodo and Vice President Mar'uf Amin waved before leaving for Halim Perdanakusuma Airport Jakarta. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - The level of public trust in the Jokowi-Ma'ruf government as a whole in the October 2022 period was 62.1 percent.

Especially in the economic aspect, it is at 50.8 percent.

The government is advised to focus on maintaining food price stability in order to grow public trust.

The latest Kompas Research and Development Survey also shows that public trust in the Jokowi-Ma'ruf Amin government in the aspect of law enforcement is the lowest.

The overall level of public trust fell 5 percent compared to the June 2022 survey, down 11.8 percent compared to the January 2022 survey.

Trisakti University public policy observer Trubus Rahadiansyah said the government should stabilize prices of basic necessities to foster satisfaction and public trust.

"In my opinion, the government must focus on controlling prices so that they do not rise, remain stable. Of course, keeping inflation levels under control," he said, Monday, October 24.

Trubus stressed the importance of the government to focus on food availability and equity amid the threat of a global food crisis.

He said, the central and local governments must also collaborate to maintain food availability and equity, including anticipating food misappropriation.

"This food must be made in such a way as its availability because the prediction of a food crisis will occur. The government must now focus on ministries that directly deal with food. We actually have many institutions that take care of food, there are Bulog, Food Agency, Ministry of Agriculture, and other ministries. That must be collaboration, coordination. Don't have sectoral egos anymore," he said.

Not only that, Trubus suggested that distribution factors be considered.

According to him, the government already has infrastructure support that should be able to be used to facilitate food distribution.

"We already have infrastructure support, toll roads, ports, everything has been made. There should be no less or excess areas, the government will remain silent. This is public trust, so it is confused," he said.

In addition, said Trubus, the government must also focus on household consumption by maintaining people's purchasing power and the success of food commodities.

"In this case, the government must encourage the distribution of the lower class of household consumption. So the goods are available and affordable," he explained.

Trubus is concerned about extreme poverty which shows an increasing trend of symptoms.

Extreme poverty can trigger public distrust of the government.

"This extreme poverty will be a scourge for the occurrence of a disruptive public. So I'm afraid of that," he concluded.

Meanwhile, political observer Ujang Komarudin assessed that the level of trust in the government that experienced a decline was considered reasonable due to the impact of the increase in subsidized fuel oil prices (BBM).

"So if the satisfaction of the community, respondents towards the Jokowi government decrease, the fact is that way. For example, the increase in fuel can reduce the level of public satisfaction with the Jokowi-Ma'ruf government," said Ujang.

In responding to the increase in fuel prices, said Ujang, the government provided a number of social assistance (bansos) to the community.

According to Ujang, the provision of social assistance has an influence in society.

"When increasing fuel, compensation is accompanied by compensation for providing assistance to the community, so as not to be angry, calm, and still believe in the government. That way the neutral community, there are those who believe because they are assisted," he said.