The Presence Of BP BUMN Is Considered A Form Of Budget Expenditure

Ministry of SOEs (Photo: VOI)

JAKARTA - BUMN observer and Next Indonesia Center Director Herry Gunawan views the BUMN Regulatory Agency (BP) as a substitute for the ministry, a form of waste of budget by the government.

For your information, the Status of the Ministry of SOEs has changed to the Regulation Agency (BP) in line with the inauguration of the Draft Law (RUU) on the Fourth Amendment to Law Number 19 of 2003 concerning State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN).

Herry said that the urgency of the formation of BP BUMN does not exist, considering that there is already a Danantara Investment Management Agency (BPI). Moreover, SOEs are private bodies like other private companies, so the regulations that are followed should be the same as the private sector.

"That way, BP BUMN is not needed. If it is still there, of course it will be a waste of the budget. If you follow the previous budget of the Ministry of SOEs, it could be up to Rp. 300 billion which must be provided by the State Budget," he told VOI, Friday, October 3.

According to Herry, the hundreds of billions of budget should have been used by the government for strategic programs rather than forming an agency that does not have urgency.

"More benefits are used for strategic programs," he said.

Herry assessed that the presence of BP BUMN through the ratification of the BUMN Law actually gave a bad signal for state-owned companies.

"The negative potential is bigger," he said.

According to Herry, BP BUMN was given a blank check to intervene in BUMN, because it had the authority to optimize the role of SOEs. Herry assessed that the term optimizing this was a rubber article for intervening in SOEs.

"In fact, currently there is BPI Danantara who already has a holding to oversee the management of state-owned assets and investments," he said.

Then, continued Herry, the BUMN Law has only legalized the dual positions of state officials with regulatory status, to concurrently serve as operators in BUMN. This is shown by not prohibiting Echelon 1 and below state officials from concurrently serving as BUMN Commissioners.

"This action is a conflict of interest, ethics that are highly avoided in corporate governance. The new SOE Law only prohibits Ministers and Deputy Ministers who have been stipulated by the State Ministry Law, including decisions of the Constitutional Court," he explained.

In addition, according to Herry, SOEs were returned as before Law Number 1 of 2025 concerning SOEs, which could be examined by the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK).

"Thus, SOEs will again become separated state assets, although in Law Number 1 of 2025 it has been emphasized that SOEs are private bodies, which means they are private companies," he said.

Therefore, Herry assessed that the presence of BP BUMN would actually increase the burden of the new bureaucracy for SOEs. This is because it has more power, namely as a regulator and also has intervention in state-owned companies.

This BUMN BP is more similar as the Ministry of SOEs plus plus, in terms of having more power. Apart from being a regulator like the Ministry of SOEs, there is also the authority to intervene in SOEs on the grounds of optimizing it," he said.