PSI Once Holds A Hundred Liter Market Operation, Claims To Get Cooking Oil From A Stall, How Come?

Illustration. (Photo: Doc. Antara)

JAKARTA - The operation of the cheap cooking oil market held by the PSI political party has raised a question mark in the public's mind. How not, in the midst of the scarcity of cooking oil in the market, the political party chaired by Giring Ganesha easily obtains large amounts of cooking oil to sell cheaply to the public.

PSI Spokesperson Sigit Widodo explained that PSI DPDs in districts/cities have often carried out social actions for the local community. One of them is the operation of the cheap cooking oil market conducted by DPD PSI Bekasi Regency.

Sigit said, since cooking oil with cheap prices is scarce in the market, DPD PSI has started a 'Solidarity Bazaar' activity selling cooking oil for Rp. 10,000 thousand per liter.

Furthermore, Sigit said this activity had been carried out 12 times in different locations. Each location sells an average of 200 liters of cooking oil. Thus, a total of almost 2,500 liters of cheap cooking oil have been sold.

"The way to get it, PSI Bekasi Regency friends is an average of 50 thousand. After they have collected enough to buy about 200 liters of cooking oil, they then look to stalls and traditional markets," he said when contacted by VOI, Tuesday, March 15.

According to Sigit, from one kiosk visited, PSI members sometimes get 20-40 liters of cooking oil for Rp. 17,000 thousand to Rp. 18,000 thousand. They buy in several stalls and kiosks that are visited up to 200 liters.

"These oils are then sold at a loss for Rp. 10,000 thousand per liter, usually in collaboration with local RTs so that they are right on target because we are more targeting the poor," he explained.

"After being sold, the Rp 2 million obtained was used again to buy 200 liters of cooking oil for different locations. The lack of money was obtained from another cadre of cadres. And so on until last week, we have managed to sell cooking oil in 12 locations," he continued.

Based on the data held, Sigit said that the cooking oil sold to the public was of various brands. Initially, it was one brand considering the difficulty of supply in the market. However, last week, the oil sold through the low-cost market operation was of various brands.

"All kinds of things. At the last activity last week the Fraiswell brand," he said.

Rare oil in the market

However, the fact that the VOI team found in the field is that cooking oil in markets and in stalls is scarce. One of them is in the Aries market, West Jakarta. Market traders complained about the difficulty of getting supplies of cooking oil for resale.

One trader who did not want to be named said that he had not sold palm cooking oil for a month. Because, he did not get a supply of cooking oil from the agent where he bought it.

"It's rare now. Oil is very difficult. Usually there are Tropical, Bimoli, Fortune, Sania, now that's no longer there. There is cooking oil out (with) new names, but I don't sell it," he told VOI, when found at Aries Market, West Jakarta, Tuesday, March 15.

Meanwhile, another trader who did not want to be named also admitted that he did not have any stock of palm cooking oil to sell. Instead, he sells corn cooking oil at a price of Rp. 90 thousand per two liters.

"There is Barco (coconut oil) and CCO (corn oil). If palm oil is empty, Bimoli has not been around for a long time," he said.

Scarcity also occurs in grocery stalls in the Tangerang area, Banten. Neither one liter nor two liter of oil can be seen in the stall.

The shop owner named Joko said he had not sold cooking oil for a week. According to Joko, oil stock is not available at the agent where he usually buys it.

"There's no oil. There's been no oil for a week," he said.