IDR 750 Thousand Ticket To Borobudur, Member Of Parliament: Why Is State-Managed Tourism More Expensive Than Private?

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JAKARTA - The DPR understands the plan to increase the price of access tickets to the Borobudur Temple building for the sake of revitalizing, managing and preserving the cultural heritage for the better in the future. However, the plan to increase ticket prices for local tourists must be within reasonable limits, and can be affordable by the wider community.

"As for the price for tickets for foreign tourists, please let it be purely a business matter, which is related to economic value and competitive prices with similar tourist destinations in the world. But for local tourist tickets, it must be affordable by the widest possible Indonesian people," said Deputy Chairman of Commission VI DPR RI, M Sarmuji in Jakarta, Tuesday, June 7.

Sarmuji reminded, Borobudur Temple is a tourist area managed by a State-Owned Enterprise (BUMN). Therefore, the price of Borobudur tickets must pay attention to the general benefit and be adequate for the fulfillment of the needs of many people, as is the purpose of the establishment of BUMN.

"If ticket prices for local residents are raised so high, people will think why state-run tourist attractions are even more expensive than private tourist attractions, right?" he said in his written statement.

Sarmuji added that the purpose of SOEs, apart from seeking profit, must also provide benefits for the fulfillment of the needs of many people. Commission VI of the House of Representatives, one of which is related to SOEs, hopes that the planned rate increase for Borobudur Temple will take this into account.

"In this case, it means that SOEs must be useful for fulfilling the tourism needs of as many Indonesian citizens as possible. It should not be exclusive to those who can afford it, "said Sarmuji.

The DPR understands that the government's plan to make Borobudur Temple an international standard cultural heritage conservation laboratory requires restrictions on visitor access to the temple buildings, so that the burden of visiting the temple buildings is reduced. However, said Sarmuji, good intentions should not harm the people.

"But if the only way is to raise prices fantastically for local tourists, I think the plan is not wise," said the legislator from the East Java VI electoral district.

"Especially for the sake of students and history learning, ticket prices must be even cheaper so that the current generation can learn lessons from the past," added Sarmuji.

He also considered, there are many other ways to limit visitors who go up to the temple building. According to Sarmuji, the online reservation system, which is widely used in the transition era of the Covid-19 pandemic as a form of limiting visitor quotas, can be used as a solution without having to raise prices fantastically.

“Restricting the quota of visitors with high prices is not the right way. It can also be done by making online reservations for a maximum of 1,200 people per day, for example, without having to raise ticket prices fantastically," he appealed.

Sarmuji also reminded that the manager of the Borobudur Temple tourist area must continue to socialize and educate tourists about preserving the nation's cultural heritage. He hopes that the management and related agencies will involve the DPR as a representation of the people regarding the plan to increase the entrance ticket to Borobudur Temple.

"So don't socialize and educate about the new face of Borobudur Temple, losing to the news about price increases," concluded Sarmuji.