The Undisclosed Cooking Oil Mafia Problem, Observer From Trisakti University: This Is Just An Alibi Of Trade Minister Lutfi

JAKARTA - The names of potential suspects for the cooking oil mafia have not been revealed to the public. In fact, in mid-March, the Minister of Trade Muhammad Lutfi said he would reveal the names of the mafia.

Public Policy Observer from Trisakti University Trubus Rahadiansyah suspects that the cooking oil mafia actually doesn't exist. He considered that what was conveyed by the Minister of Trade Lutfi was merely an alibi to cover his inability to resolve the domestic cooking oil problem.

"I suspect that the mafia doesn't exist. It's just an alibi for the minister to cover his incompetence, his incompetence in solving the cooking oil problem. So they call it mafia, but actually the mafia doesn't exist," he told VOI, Friday, April 1.

According to Trubus, the problem of scarcity and high cost of cooking oil that has occurred since the end of 2021 is the work of elements in the government and businessmen. That is, it does not come to the existence of the cooking oil mafia.

"This is actually a conspiracy between businessmen and elements in the government itself," he said.

Previously reported, Trade Minister Muhammad Lutfi said he would reveal the names of the cooking oil mafia to the public. The mafia is suspected of hoarding cooking oil in very large quantities.

This was conveyed by Lutfi in a Working Meeting with Commission VI regarding the Discussion on Commodity Prices and Readiness of the Ministry of Trade to Stabilize Prices and Supply of Basic Needs Ahead of Fasting and Eid at the DPR RI Office, Thursday, March 17.

Initially, Lutfi said that he had provided data on findings to the police regarding the accumulation of cooking oil, which amounted to thousands of tons.

"I have given all the data. This is still a presumption of innocence, but we have found it and this is in the thousands of tons (hoarding). We have reported it to the Police through the Criminal Investigation Unit, we have started to arrest and investigate," he said.

According to Lutfi, there are already suspects who will be named. The determination of the suspect candidates will be announced on Monday, March 21 by the police.

Member of Commission VI DPR Andre Rosiade admitted that he was furious with the government's attitude, in this case the Ministry of Trade, which seemed to have no guts in dismantling the mafia and cooking oil cartels. According to him, the Ministry of Trade actually lost decisively to the Business Competition Supervisory Commission (KPPU) in this regard.

For your information, the KPPU's investigation team has found one piece of evidence in the law enforcement process related to the sale or distribution of national cooking oil. Furthermore, KPPU is targeting 8 large business actors who are producers, suspected of practicing cooking oil cartels.

"KPPU has already said that there are allegations by 8 cartels, when the Ministry of Trade does not have data? If there is, please open the data! Don't be afraid, this is for the people! KPPU dares to say that there are allegations of 8 cooking oil cartels, they dare to say that even though the budget is only Rp. 90- billion. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Trade has a budget of Rp. 2.4 trillion," he told reporters, Thursday, March 31.

Therefore, Andre asked the Ministry of Trade to cooperate with the Financial and Development Supervisory Agency (BPKP) and the Indonesian Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) to conduct an investigative audit related to this cooking oil problem.

Moreover, said Andre, Indonesia's palm oil production reaches 49 million tons per year and is the largest producer of crude palm oil (CPO) in the world, where cooking oil prices should be much cheaper.

"We are the largest CPO producer in the world, producing 49 million tons a year, we should be able to control it for the benefit of our people, not us losing to the market. Therefore I request an investigative audit of the Ministry of Trade with BPKP or BPK RI," he said.

In addition, according to Andre, he also proposed that the Ministry of Trade conduct an audit of the cost of cooking oil production. "So that we know how much the cost of production is," he added.

Andre assessed that the Ministry of Trade should also audit the investigation of the disappearance of packaged and bulk cooking oil when the DMO and DPO policies were issued. However, after the DMO and DPO policies were revoked and the government applied the price of packaged cooking oil following the market price mechanism, the stock of packaged cooking oil immediately circulated in the field.

"So those are the three points that I ask for an investigative audit by the Ministry of Trade together with BPKP or BPK. So that this is unraveled," he said.