Police Food Task Force Warns Cooking Oil Hoarders To Take Action

Members of the Food Task Force when checking the stock of packaged cooking oil at a distributor warehouse in Mataram City, NTB, Thursday (17/2/2022). (ANTARA/HO-Humas NTB Police)

JAKARTA - The National Police's Food Task Force (Satgas) has warned that business actors hoarding cooking oil will be dealt with because their actions are against the law and can cause shortages.

The Head of the Public Information Bureau (Karo Penmas) of the Public Relations Division of the Police Brigadier General Ahmad Ramadhan said that business actors who are proven to have hoarded can be sentenced to a maximum of 5 years in prison and a maximum fine of Rp. 50 billion as stipulated in the laws and regulations.

"Business actors who carry out hoarding can be charged with Article 107 in conjunction with Article 29 paragraph 1 of Law no. 7 Tofu. 2014 in conjunction with Article 11 paragraph 2 of Presidential Regulation No. 71 of 2015 concerning the Determination and Storage of Basic Needs and Important Items," said Brigadier General Ramadhan quoted by Antara, Saturday, February 19.

Karo Penmas said the National Police's Food Task Force would also immediately distribute the stockpiled cooking oil to the market so that the public could buy it at the price set by the government.

"Regarding the finding of 92,676 boxes of cooking oil weighing 1,138,361 kilograms in a warehouse belonging to PT Salim Ivomas Pratama Tbk, the National Police Food Task Force encourages the cooking oil to be immediately distributed to the public through market mechanisms under the supervision of the National Police Food Task Force," said Ramadhan. .

The National Police Task Force conveyed that the stock or availability of cooking oil in several areas was sufficient or still safe, but he did not deny that several business actors were hoarding it.

Therefore, the National Police invites all parties to jointly carry out surveillance and checks directly on the market. The National Police's Food Task Force also encourages related institutions to routinely hold market operations to ensure the availability of cooking oil and ensure the price is in accordance with the limits set by the government.

The National Police reiterated that the National Police Food Task Force will always support and oversee government policies in maintaining the stability of cooking oil prices and ensuring its availability in the market.