Minister Of Agriculture Amran Will Fire Ministry Of Agriculture Employees Involved In Gratification

Minister of Agriculture, Andi Amran Sulaiman. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - Minister of Agriculture (Mentan) Andi Amran Sulaiman ensured that he would fire and would not tolerate employees within the Ministry of Agriculture (Kementan) who were proven to have violated the rules such as receiving or giving gratuities.

"No entrepreneurs or employees of the Ministry of Agriculture should receive a fee. If there is something like that, I will make sure to fire and remove it. So, don't try to tease agricultural people or try to take profits," Amran said after attending the Socialization of the Areal Tanam Padi Expansion Program through Rawa Land Optimization at the Ministry of Agriculture Headquarters in Jakarta, quoted from Antara, Tuesday, April 2.

Amran emphasized that if there are employees who are proven to be involved, they can be gratuities, they will not hesitate to be fired. If there are entrepreneurs who try to provide fees, they will be brought to justice. The Minister of Agriculture does not want such dirty methods to be in agricultural institutions.

The Minister of Agriculture told him that he had committed firmness against the practice of criminal acts during the first period of Indonesian President Joko Widodo (Jokowi). At that time he even fired an echelon one-level official because he was proven to have received a fee.

Amran also admitted that he had brought the businessmen involved into the criminal area because they were both conspiring.

"In the past, there were two echelon one officials who I removed for acting outside the rules so that the Ministry of Agriculture for the first time managed to get the title of WTP (Unqualified) in 2016. So, now I emphasize not to play games with the agricultural sector, serve it well professionally," he said.

The Minister of Agriculture emphasized that the policy of dismissal or removal was in sight for those who remain naughty in the agricultural sector.

Moreover, the Ministry of Agriculture currently has an internal supervisor led by the Commissioner General (Komjen) Pol. Setyo Budiyanto, who has also worked at the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK).

"Now there is Mr. Inspector General from the KPK, the three-star police general whom I asked to supervise in order to facilitate the services provided so that we can accelerate planting," he explained.

The Minister of Agriculture said that the Government is currently focusing on working on pumping as a quick solution in pursuing and increasing production that had decreased due to bad weather by El Nino. Therefore, everything related to procurement, both alsintan and fertilizer, must be maintained together.

"Procurement of agricultural machinery, procurement of fertilizers, and so on, nothing will be complicated. Remember that entrepreneurs are also part of us so that licensing issues and all kinds must be simplified so that they can be fast because we have to pursue planting," said Amran.