The Minister Of Trade Will Give Sanctions For Shopping Centers That Fail To Follow Health Protocols

Minister of Trade, Agus Suparmanto. (Photo: Twitter @Mendag)

JAKARTA - The Minister of Trade, Agus Suparmanto, emphasized that he would sanction the revocation of operating permits for modern shopping centers that do not apply health protocols. This means that the shopping center will immediately be closed if it does not comply.

However, Agus explained, in order for the imposition of this sanction to be effective, his party would start with the socialization first. Moreover, the shopping center only opened two weeks ago.

"We have to be persuasive, we will only be given sanctions for closure if they do not comply with health protocols. With socialization it will make them aware and this approach is more effective. If not, the sanction is to close the retail," he said, June 25th.

Agus said that in implementing the health protocol, his party had written a Circular (SE) of the Minister of Trade Number 12 of 2020. The goal was that trade places prioritized health protocols.

"So that both consumers and traders feel safe and comfortable. So that activities can be carried out. Then the capacity is limited by working hours. The visit is more focused. So that there will be anticipation that the number of visitors is already large," he said.

On the other hand, Agus admitted, he is optimistic that the retail sector will rise again. This is because goods that are needed by the public are sold in the retail sector.

"With the new normal and new spirit, we are ready to become the motor for the movement of the national retail business," he explained.

Needs close supervision

Meanwhile, Economist of the Institute for Development of Economics and Finance (Indef), Andry Satrio Nugroho said that the government and retail associations need to be firm in implementing this health protocol. He is worried that this health protocol will only be implemented temporarily.

"We need to push, because not all malls can comply with health protocols. This could be euphoria for a moment for a month. But in the future, it will disappear. Now this must be of particular concern," said Andry.

Moreover, said Andry, based on the addition of positive cases per day with an average of 1,000 people. Since it has been decided to resume operations, the government must now ensure that the health protocol is implemented by modern shopping centers.

Furthermore, Andry said, in Indonesia the health and economic sectors must be able to go hand in hand. This is because it cannot only be concerned with one sector.

"When this goes side by side, I think in the future it will probably improve our economy. Maybe the occupancy of 50 percent can be increased when the daily figure drops drastically," he said.

In addition, Andry said, there is no need to impose such large sanctions for retail businesses who do not comply with health protocols. However, the government is sufficient to revoke the incentive facilities provided.

"I don't think there is a need to impose a large enough sanction. The facilities that have been given by the government, could be reduced or revoked. This could be an initiative for malls to maintain health protocols," he said.