IMIP Airport Polemic, Government Asked To Affirm Regulation Supervision And Compliance

Photo: Special

JAKARTA The existence of air facilities in the Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park (IMIP) area has returned to public attention after allegations emerged that airport operations in the industrial area were not yet fully under the supervision of state authorities.

This polemic raises concerns regarding regulatory compliance as well as its implications for investment governance and national economic security.

The head of Exponent 08 M Damar urged the government to thoroughly investigate the operational permits of airports within the industrial complex which has been the center for nickel production and mineral downstream in Morowali, Central Sulawesi.

He assessed that airport management without the involvement of state official authorities could pose risks to sovereignty and the integrity of supervision in strategic industrial areas.

"Investigate the licensing of the existence of Morowali airport. This threatens the country's sovereignty and must immediately explain who has an interest behind it," Damar said in a written statement received by VOI, Thursday, November 27.

Risks of economic and logistical surveillance

Damar assessed that the weak supervision of the state of airports in industrial areas could create gaps in economic activity that were not monitored, especially in the mining sector, which has been the backbone of Indonesia's nickel exports.

He said the condition could resemble states in the country' and open up potential smuggling, movement of logistics without control, to other illegal activities that have an impact on economic security.

"A port that is difficult to access and not open to the public raises questions about transparency in management and potential violations that have occurred over the years," he said.

Licensing and supervision polemics

Damar also responded to a statement by the Deputy Minister of Transportation who said IMIP Airport had a permit.

He stressed that the question is not merely legality, but the function of state supervision in vital objects with goods and human traffic that is sensitive to the national economy.

"What the Minister of Defense emphasized is the importance of the presence of state apparatus under surveillance. Formal permits are not the only issues, but who runs the authorities in the field," said Damar.

Sebelumnya, Menteri Pertahanan Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin menyoroti anomali keberadaan bandara tanpa perangkat negara saat menghadiri Latihan Operasi Udara TNI di Bandara Morowali, Kamis, 20 November 2025.

Dia menilai, hal tersebut dapat menimbulkan kerawanan, termasuk terhadap kedaulatan ekonomi di kawasan industri strategis yang memiliki kontribusi besar pada ekspor dan rantai pasok mineral Indonesia.

“Bandara yang tidak memiliki perangkat negara di dalamnya merupakan anomali dalam NKRI. Regulasi harus ditegakkan,” kata Sjafrie.

Menurutnya, TNI melakukan simulasi intersep pesawat untuk mengantisipasi potensi aktivitas ilegal yang berpotensi mengganggu keamanan nasional maupun aliran logistik yang terhubung dengan industri nikel di Morowali.

Previously, Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin highlighted the anomaly of the existence of airports without state apparatus while attending the TNI Air Operations Exercise at Morowali Airport, Thursday, November 20, 2025.

He considered that this could lead to vulnerability, including to economic sovereignty in strategic industrial areas that have a major contribution to Indonesian mineral supply exports and chains.

The airport that does not have state apparatus in it is an anomaly in the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia. Regulations must be enforced," said Sjafrie.

According to him, the TNI conducts simulations of aircraft intercepts to anticipate potential illegal activities that have the potential to disrupt national security and logistics flows connected to the nickel industry in Morowali.