JAKARTA – The former Director General of Taxes (Dirjen) of the Ministry of Finance Hadi Poernomo also responded to the dilemma of the fuel subsidy (BBM) budget dilemma, which had almost run out before the close of the year.
According to Hadi, subsidies are a form of state presence in helping the community through the State Budget instrument. He said that the polemic over the swollen subsidy budget would not be a problem if the order was to strengthen the revenue sector.
"It's like the government has to open up all legal umbrellas regarding taxes in order to maximize revenue sources. If it can run well and the community obeys, I'm sure there will be no problems with subsidies,” he said when met in Jakarta on Wednesday, August 24.
Hadi added that this assumption can be seen from the current tax ratio. He said, the higher the tax ratio, the greater the potential for tax revenue. This of course increases the government's ability to provide budget.
For example, during his tenure as Director General of Taxes at the Ministry of Finance for the period 2001-2006, the tax ratio could reach double digits or around 12 percent. However, now that figure has slipped to 9 percent.
"If it's double digits, I'm sure it can (the government bears the fuel subsidy)," he said.
As is known, the government has increased the subsidy and compensation budget for this year to Rp502 trillion from the previous Rp100 trillion per year. The figure swelled due to an increase in world energy commodity prices.
This situation is even more complicated because the consumption rate is moving faster than the estimates made by the government. As a result, the subsidized fuel quota has almost run out and it is believed that it will not be sufficient until the end of the year.
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