Explaining Subsidy Problems In DPD Meeting, Sri Mulyani: If It Is Increased, Where Will The Money Come From? Debt Again?

Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani (Photo: screenshot of DPD Youtube)

JAKARTA - Minister of Finance (Menkeu) Sri Mulyani was present at a working meeting session with the DPD RI related to the submission of the 2021 State Budget Accountability Bill and the 2023 State Budget Bill.

In a question and answer session, the Minister of Finance responded to a question from one of the DPD senators regarding the fuel oil (BBM) subsidy policy. In his statement, the state treasurer tried to straighten out the perception that the government had not revoked the subsidy budget at all.

"So I emphasize that the government has not removed the subsidy, but indeed the Rp502 trillion of the money has run out due to high consumption," he said at the Senayan Parliament Complex, Jakarta on Thursday, August 25.

According to the Minister of Finance, his party together with several related agencies are still continuing to study the possibility of strategic policies that will be taken. The reason is, the issue of fuel subsidies is not a popular issue for every government because it directly intersects with the needs of the wider community.

“The question is, do you want to add (subsidy) or not? If you add (the money) where does it come from? Have to go into debt again? So the President asked all of our plans to be calculated very carefully," he said.

On this occasion, the Minister of Finance explained that the consumption of subsidized pertalite type fuel had reached 16.8 million kilo liters from the quota of 23 million kilo liters. Meanwhile, for the type of diesel, 9.98 million kilo liters of the total 15.1 million kilo liters have been absorbed.

"If you follow the current trend, pertalite runs out at the end of September and diesel runs out in October," he said.

Meanwhile, the value of subsidies and compensation for this year is planned at Rp. 158 trillion in the 2022 State Budget Act. However, that figure shot up to Rp. 502 trillion in line with the need to fill the disparity in global prices with domestic selling values.