Jakarta – Executive Director of the Center for Public Policy Studies (Puskepi) Sofyano Zakaria in a written statement, Thursday (11/8) said that the government needs to immediately form a national integrated task force tasked with monitoring and prosecuting the misuse of subsidised fuel and LPG. The step is important to save state finances from any misuse of energy subsidies.
The burden of energy subsidies borne by the state is considered to be very large, with its value as of last July, reaching Rp 116 trillion. The energy subsidy is channelled into fuel oil (BBM) types of diesel and pertalite, as well as Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) or 3 kilograms (kg) LPG cylinders.
“Members of this national integrated task force can be drawn from various elements such as the KPK, the Attorney General’s Office, TNI, Polri, BIN (State Intelligence Agency), Bais TNI (Strategic Intelligence Agency), BPK, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, BPH Migas (Downstream Regulatory Agency). Oil and Gas) and PT Pertamina,” said Zakaria.
He said, the current limited capacity of the agency must be overcome by the government by establishing an integrated task force for monitoring and cracking down on the misuse of subsidised fuel and LPG, so that at least the quota for subsidised fuel and LPG does not always fall apart.
“The energy subsidy burden borne by the government is very large, it should be a concern for all parties and not only the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources and BPH Migas, so that the burden does not continue to increase, for example by over quotas,” Zakaria said, adding that the government needs to pay special attention to supervising subsidised diesel fuel, Pertalite, and subsidised LPG, and to take firm action against the misuse of these subsidised goods.
Zakaria said the selling price of subsidised diesel set by the government was only IDR 5,150 per litre, so that the state would bear the burden of subsidies of around IDR 13,000 per litre from the economic price of IDR 18,150 per litre. While the selling price of Pertalite is IDR 7,650 per litre, the burden of subsidies or compensation provided by the state is IDR 9,500 per litre from the economic price of IDR 17,200 per litre. As for the 3 kg LPG, the subsidy provided by the state is around IDR 11,750 per kg or around IDR 35,350 per 3-kg cylinder.
This causes the state to provide subsidised diesel fuel in 2022 as much as 14.9 million kilolitres, pertalite as much as 23.05 million kilolitres and 3 kg LPG as much as 8 million metric tons or equivalent to 8 billion kg or 2.666 billion 3-kg cylinders. (Hartatik)
Banner photo: “Hanya untuk masyarakat miskin” or “Only for poor people” written on 3-kg subsidised LPG gas canisters. Taken on 20 January 2021. (Ani Fathudin/shutterstock.com)
