Reviewing The Comparison Of BBM Subsidy Policy In The SBY And Jokowi Period

YOGYAKARTA The comparison between fuel subsidies during the SBY and Jokowi era is interesting to be studied in the midst of the discourse on increasing the price of subsidized oil oil types pertalite and Solar.

The price of Pertalite type fuel will rise to the level of Rp. 10,000/liter on September 1 tomorrow. Meanwhile, Solar is priced at Rp. 8,500/liter.

As of today, Wednesday, August 31, 2022, the price of Pertalite at the Pertardina gas station is still for Rp. 7,650/liter. Meanwhile, Solar is sold at a price of Rp. 5,500/liter. Thus, the price of Pertalite has increased by Rp. 2,350/liter and Solar has increased by Rp. 3,000 per liter.

The government's decision to increase the prices of Pertalite and Solar because the 2022 State Expenditure Budget (APBN) is no longer able to support energy subsidies including subsidies for fuel oil (BBM) this year.

Originally, the increase in subsidized fuel prices did not only occur during President Jokowi's time. In the previous era, namely President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, subsidized fuel prices had experienced several increases. The reason is that the state budget for fuel subsidies swelled and limited fiscal spaces.

Compiled by VOI from various sources, during two terms of office, SBY was recorded to have increased the price of subsidized fuel oil four times and lowered it three times.

SBY first increased the price of subsidized fuel in March 2005. The next increase was only seven months later.

In May 2008, SBY again raised the price of fuel. Subsidized fuel oil in the SBY Era last rose, namely in 2013 or a year before the Speaker of the Democratic Party's Upper House stepped down as president.

In 2013, SBY set a Premium price of IDR 6,500/liter. This figure increased by IDR 2,000 from the previous price. The price increase has actually been planned since the previous year. However, due to the massive resistance from the community and parliament, the price of subsidized fuel has not been raised.

In 2012, the increase in fuel prices was determined through a plenary session of the DPR. At that time, PDIP, which incidentally was an opposition party, fought hard in a plenary session. They even took a walkout because the plenary session had been going on for 12 hours.

At that time, PDIP was of the view that the government's way of saving the state budget was by increasing the price of fuel inaccurately. According to them, there is an alternative to saving the state budget without causing trouble to the community, for example by looking for other sources of funding. This view is contained in a book entitled PDI-P Argummentation Rejecting the Increase in fuel prices which were printed as many as 40 thousand copies and distributed to cadres, media, and the public.

Meanwhile, during the Jokowi administration, fuel prices were also recorded to have increased several times. In April 2022, the government raised the price of Pertamax type fuel from Rp. 9,000/liter to Rp. 12,500/liter. Most recently, Jokowi plans to increase the price of Pertalite and Solar each to a level of Rp. 10,000/liter and Rp. 8,500/liter.

However, the reaction of the community and parliament to Jokowi's policies is different from that of SBY. The community resistance is smaller and the DPR does not criticize much.

In fact, the reason for the increase in fuel prices is the same, namely that the state budget is experiencing extraordinary pressure due to subsidies for fuel oil.

According to Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati, the subsidized fuel quota targeted in this year's APBN is predicted to expire in October.

"If we look at the volume of consumption (BBM-ed) following over the past eight months, the quota will run out in October, if consumption remains the same," Sri Mulyani said on Friday, August 26, 2022, quoted from Antara.

At the same time, continued Sri Mulyani, energy compensation which reached Rp502 trillion this year will also expire in October 2022.

"What is happening now, with the economic recovery, consumption and subsidies still high, diesel and pertalite consumption is estimated to far exceed what is in the state budget," said Sri Mulyani.

At least the pressure that Jokowi felt when raising fuel prices, including subsidized fuel oil, might be due to his success in embracing many powers in parliament. This step is quite effective in avoiding the deadlocks that occur during the SBY administration.

Thus is the comparison of fuel subsidy policies during the SBY and Jokowi periods. Although they both increase the price of subsidized fuel. However, the pressure SBY feels is much greater than Jokowi.