Welcoming The Discourse Of The Mendes PDTT To Raise Village Funds, This Is Surtawijaya's Hope

Surtawijaya. (IST)

The discourse on increasing village funds from Rp. 1 billion per year to Rp. 5 billion per year put forward by the Minister of Villages, Development of Disadvantaged Regions, and Transmigration (Mendes PDTT) Abdul Halim Iskandar was welcomed by the Chairman of Apdesi (Association of Government of All Indonesian Villages) Surtawijaya.

According to Surtawijaya, it is time for villages to be more empowered by adding village funds. "I welcome the discourse launched by the Minister of Villages PDTT. If you refer to Law No. 6 of 2010 concerning Villages, actually Rp. 1 billion per village per year has not been in accordance with the mandate of the law," he said.

Then how much is mandated by the law for village funds? "According to the Village Law, the village fund is 10 percent of regional balance funds. So it must be more than IDR 1 billion," he said.

According to Surta, the regulations implemented so far, 70 percent of these funds are managed by the central government and 30 percent by local governments. "It should be behind 30 percent of the center of 70 percent of the village," he said.

Meanwhile, according to Surta, the issue of irregularities in village funds by village heads and village officials should not be used as an excuse not to distribute village funds. "Talk about abuse by individuals does exist. Yes, I think that is what must be addressed. Supervision and guidance must be stricter so that village funds are used for productive activities and are more useful for the village and all its citizens," he said.

Meanwhile, regarding the issue of the discourse on increasing village funds used by politicians to welcome the presidential and legislative elections in 2024, he did not worry too much about that. "Ahead of the 2024 presidential and legislative elections, what politicians have politicized for the benefit of political parties or their goals. I think more about all of this will have an impact on the village and its citizens if realized," he said.

So far, what Surtawijaya and other organizations have done is for the benefit of villages and villagers. Therefore, he supports the discourse made by the Mendes PDTT regarding the increase in village funds. "Hopefully it can be realized in 2024 or in the government leadership period the results of the 2024 election," he hoped.