JAKARTA - Minister of Trade (Mendag) Zulkifli Hasan spoke about the increase in the price of red cayenne pepper by 27.64 percent this month.
He considered that the increase was not too high and was still relatively cheap.
It's cheap. Yes, 27 percent of how much? Don't get me wrong, in the past Rp120,000 had decreased by Rp20,000, so if Rp30,000 goes up, 50 percent goes up. But it's still Rp30,000, it's still far away," he said when met at the Office of the Ministry of Trade, Jakarta, Friday, December 6.
Zulhas, as Zulkifli Hasan is familiarly called, said that if the price of chili continues to increase, the government will distribute distribution subsidies originating from general transfer funds (DTU), in the form of unexpected costs (BTT).
"If it's very expensive, the transport is replaced. So the price can be measured. If it's even more expensive, the price will be subsidized by the local government from the budget of 2 percent of the APBD. That unexpected cost," he said.
He said local governments were now more responsive in dealing with rising food prices.
Zulhas said, there will be penalties for local governments that do not comply with the rules.
"So if the regents, mayors are active now, because if they are not with the Minister of Home Affairs, they will be punished, there will be punishment," he said.
Meanwhile, for the Bali and Jakarta regions, Zulhas claims the government has subsidized food.
Especially in Jakarta, said Zulhas, it has subsidized the price of meat on a large scale.
(Jakarta) has a lot of subsidies. I have, in Bali, all prices are subsidized," he said.
As is known, based on the Market Monitoring System page and the Basic Needs of the Ministry of Trade, the price of red cayenne pepper as of January 5 was IDR 66,500 per kilogram (kg), an increase of almost 27.64 percent compared to December 2022.
Meanwhile, in DKI Jakarta, the price of cayenne pepper increased to 44.9 percent to Rp76,700 per kg. Then in Bali the price was recorded to have increased by 68.20 percent to Rp73,000 per kg.
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