Chairman (Ketum) of the Democratic Party Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono alias AHY criticized government policies that were considered less in favor of the poor or little people.
According to him, in the midst of difficult economic situations, the government prioritizes the construction of lighthouse projects that have no impact on the lives of small communities.
"The problem is, not just because of the global crisis. Our economic problems are getting more complicated, because state finances are not managed properly. The budget is too much to be used to finance lighthouse projects, which do not have much impact on the lives of children, do not have much impact on our brothers and sisters who are poor and poor," AHY said in his political speech at Tennis Indoor Senayan, Jakarta, Tuesday, March 14.
AHY highlighted the budget deficit covered with government debt, where in the last eight years the figure has increased to three times. But again, the debt was actually borne by the people until taxes were also raised. "According to the Ministry of Finance, in early 2023, the figure reached Rp7,733 trillion. Not to mention, the debt of SOEs is increasingly mounting, amounting to Rp1,640 trillion. In fact, the ratio of state debt to GDP is getting higher. Again, there are parties who argue, the debt ratio is still safe. That's not the problem. Now, we have difficulty paying debts, because state finances are also facing pressure. In fact, the people will also bear debts, through taxes they pay," said AHY. As a result of the debt burden, he continued, fiscal space became very limited. According to him, it would be unfair if the result of the debt that was missed by the next government was not free to finance national development. "Don't punish the innocent party," said AHY.
In the midst of these limitations, said AHY, tax management has not been carried out properly, and is even prone to misuse. Even though 80 percent of state revenue comes from taxes collected from people's sweat. "As a result, people's trust in the government has decreased. For this reason, return the credibility of tax management. The supervisory system, the people must be convinced, those who are deposited actually enter the state treasury and are used properly," he appealed. AHY also reminded the government not to apply policies that do not side with the little people. For example, in the agricultural sector as the highest labor absorber sector, which actually lacks the attention of the government.
"Furthermore, do not let government policies be less in favor of wong cilik. For example, of the 143 million workforces, the agricultural sector contributes 38 million workers or 26 percent of them. So, the agricultural sector is the main labor absorber. Unfortunately, the wong cilik sector is actually not getting attention," he said.
"In fact, the budget for the ministry of agriculture is minimal. This year alone, the budget is only Rp. 15 trillion. This figure is equivalent to the allocation of the state budget for the agricultural sector in 2014. In fact, the posture of the state budget in 2023 is Rp. 700 trillion more than 2014," he added.
Therefore, AHY said, currently his party is fighting for improvements and changes in economic policy for the welfare of the people in the future.
"So, if anyone asks, what changes and improvements are being fought for by the Democratic Party? So cadres, friends, one of our agenda for change is improving economic policies, including appropriate, fair, and oriented fiscal policies to improve people's welfare," said AHY.
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