JAKARTA - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) poked fun at the Minister of Education, Culture, Research and Technology (Mendikbud) Nadiem Makarim regarding the procurement of goods and services at his ministry. The reason is that the Ministry of Education and Culture has only absorbed a budget of Rp. 2 trillion from the Rp. 29 trillion that has been provided.
He conveyed this when briefing ministers, heads of institutions, regional heads, and state-owned enterprises (BUMN) regarding the affirmative action Proud of Indonesia in Bali today, Friday, March 25.
"This morning I checked only Rp. 2 trillion, it seems that there is something not enthusiastic in the ministry," Jokowi said as shown on the Presidential Secretariat's YouTube.
He also flicked the habit of buying imported goods. In fact, said Jokowi, Indonesia is able to produce goods such as chairs to laptops.
"When it comes to buying chairs, buying chairs, do you want to import us, do you want to import laptops from us? We can already make all of that, we can do everything," he said.
According to the former governor of DKI Jakarta, the habit of importing goods at the ministry must be stopped. This warning also applies to a number of ministries such as the Ministry of Agriculture, which is now led by Syahrul Yasin Limpo.
Jokowi said he often saw imported goods in agriculture when he visited the public. One of them, when he visited Atambua, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT).
"Alsintan, tractors like that are not just imported high tech. I'm annoyed," he said.
"Yesterday I was from Atambua, I saw tractors, machinery, I saw. You can't, the minister, you can't," added Jokowi.
He also highlighted other products that have actually been produced in the country, such as pencils to paper. But, unfortunately, these products are still often imported, which makes him confused.
"Pencils, paper, I checked, imported, pens (imported, ed). What is this? Sometimes I think, do we understand this? Could it be that we didn't do the details so we don't understand that the goods purchased are imported goods. Books write imports, don't continue, stop," said Jokowi.
"We all jump when we buy all domestic products, our economic growth jumps," he concluded.
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