Mahfud MD Signals That There Are Parties Using Recession Issues To Attack The Government

Menko Polhukam Mahfud MD (Wardhany Tsa Tsia / VOI)

JAKARTA - The Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs (Menko Polhukam) Mahfud MD said there were a number of parties who wanted to take advantage of the economic recession situation due to the COVID-19 pandemic to attack the government of President Joko Widodo (Jokowi).

According to Mahfud, there are a number of parties calling for the recession to be a crisis that occurs because the government is incapable of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Politically, there are already many who will use, 'wow, if there is a crisis, let's hit the government. Let's make this, make it in an economic recession'," Mahfud said in a coordination meeting with the governor and regent / mayor, Thursday, August 27th.

The former Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court then explained that recession and economic crisis are two different things.

When a recession occurs, a crisis does not necessarily occur. This is because, according to him, a recession is a condition in which the economy of a country experiences a minus in two consecutive quarters. "The recession again does not mean an economic crisis," he said.

Mahfud admitted that the current economic conditions in Indonesia were already on the verge of recession. In fact, he said that Indonesia will experience a recession in September or early October and this cannot be covered up.

So, to get out of this recession, President Jokowi then issued Presidential Regulation 18/2020 concerning Handling COVID-19 and National Economic Recovery.

With this Presidential Regulation, it is hoped that apart from being able to boost the economy, health factors in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic can still be a focus. "Well, that's why there was the Perpres PC and PEN," he concluded.