DKI Pemprov Do Not Exploit The Community By Selling Masks At High Prices

Illustrated. (Irfan Meidianto / VOI)

JAKARTA - The sale of masks at a fantastic price by the DKI Provincial Government is being questioned. This is because DKI Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan sells masks at a price of Rp. 300 thousand per box and Rp. 6,500 per piece.

Chairman of the Daily Management of the Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI), Tulus Abadi, considers that the selling price of masks from DKI BUMD, PD Pasar Jaya, which is equivalent to a market game, is tantamount to exploiting the community as consumers.

"If a private entrepreneur sells it, we say it is immoral, then this is even more immoral to be done by Pasar Jaya as a market which is actually owned by the government," said Tulus when contacted, Thursday, March 5.

Although there is an acknowledgment that the DKI Provincial Government has received a high price since obtaining masks from distributors or producers, there should be awareness to carry out market operations.

Second, there must be a reset on the mask trade system. Because, obtaining masks is currently very much needed by the community to deal with the transmission of the COVID-19 or corona virus.

"If it is an emergency, the mask trading system must be rearranged whether it is restrictions on purchases, storage restrictions, or even export restrictions," he said.

Critics of the high price of masks also came from the Jakarta DPRD PSI faction. Member of the PSI faction, Eneng Maliansari, assessed that this action tormented the middle and lower class people who daily shop at traditional markets.

The sale at the price of masks, said Eneng, contradicts the commitment expressed by Baswedan that will place the safety of citizens as the main thing in dealing with the corona virus infection.

"The government is actually an extension of the middlemen, what the community needs is the availability of masks at normal prices," said the woman who is familiarly called Mili.

As previously reported, the DKI Provincial Government has increased the stock of mask sales in Jakarta. PD Pasar Jaya Public Relations and Public Relations Manager Gatra Vagansa said that his party had bought masks to be sold back to the public.

"Now, the issue of mask stocks runs out. So, today we are in an effort to be able to present it. More or less, we are currently procuring 1,450 boxes of masks," said Gatra.

However, the price of a box of masks sold by PD Pasar Jaya turned out to be expensive along with the selling price in markets and other shopping centers which often ran out of masks due to scarcity of stock and increased purchases.

The DKI Pemprov is charging the price of a box of masks branded Wellbest, which is provided for Rp. 300 thousand with 50 pieces (pcs). Meanwhile, the unit price is IDR 6,500.

In fact, the normal price of the Wellbest brand mask is quite cheap. Gatra admitted, the normal price if it was sold was around IDR 30 thousand. That means, the price sold by the DKI Provincial Government has increased ten times.

"For the most common one, the green one might cost around 30,000, if I'm not mistaken in Pramuka," said Gatra. "Yes, it is true (the price has increased). Indeed, the acquisition price itself is currently rising."