Rice Solution Piles Up, Bulog Is Encouraged Collaboration With The Ministry Of Social Affairs

Rice Illustration. (Photo: Pixabay)

JAKARTA - Member of Commission IV DPR RI Andi Akmal Pasluddin encourages Perum Bulog to collaborate with the Ministry of Social Affairs in order to make the e-Warung program for Non-Cash Food Aid launched by the government a success.

"So that rice does not accumulate, the government needs to make a policy so that rice can be distributed through a non-cash food assistance program," said Andi Akmal Pasluddin in Jakarta, Monday, December 23.

The PKS politician reminded that Bulog continues to play an important role in supporting the basic food needs of the Indonesian people. For that, he said, the stock management at Bulog also needed to be improved, so that no rice would pile up to become rotten and harm Bulog.

"I hope stock management is improved so that there is no accumulation that cannot be properly distributed," he said.

He suggested that Bulog could hold a joint meeting with Commission IV of the DPR RI and invite the Ministry of Social Affairs to discuss issues that have become obstacles in realizing the work program.

Perum Bulog stated that it would immediately conduct an open auction for reduced quality rice to the five companies that passed document verification from the 12 auction participants who submitted bids.

The five companies are companies engaged in the non-food industry, namely furniture glue, ethanol, soap and fertilizer companies.

Director of Operations and Public Services of Perum Bulog, Tri Wahyudi Saleh, said that the efforts made by the company to auction off the quality of rice have been in accordance with the applicable regulations, namely: Permentan No. 38 of 2018 concerning CBP Management and Results of the National Coordination Meeting on June 24, 2019 which discusses Food (HPP Rice 2019, KPSH, Stock Release, and Sugar Balance).

"This is an effort to minimize the company's losses. We have announced this auction process in print media and the official website of Perum BULOG starting on December 13, 2019," said Tri.

Tri explained that the open auction process has entered the stage of evaluating the bids of the five companies that have passed the verification. The stage was held on Friday, December 20, 2019 at the Head Office of Bulog which was witnessed by a team from the Coordinating Ministry for the Economy, the National Police Headquarters Food Task Force, National Police Intelligence Unit and the Bulog Audit Committee.

Based on the results of verification and laboratory test results, 29,367 tons of Bulog's rice was declared to have decreased in quality and was not suitable for consumption both for food and feed.

To reduce the company's losses, Bulog conducts sales of reduced quality rice in a public offering specifically for industries that use rice as raw material which produces non-food or non-feed products.