TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - In anticipation of an upcoming rise in fuel prices, acting governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama has said that the city would optimize the Jakarta Smart Card (KJP) and Jakarta Health Card (KJS), provide more Transjakarta buses for commuters, increase workers’ minimum wage by 10 percent and coordinate with the regional inflation control team (TPID), as reported by Antara News.
Vice President Jusuf Kalla has stated that the fuel-price hike will occur some time in November, with the government eager to reform fuel subsidies. Fuel-subsidy costs are expected to top Rp276 trillion (US$22.7 billion) next year, equal to around 15 percent of total state spending, and higher than the country’s annual infrastructure spending.
Although the immensely costly subsidies are considered to have little impact on economic growth or people’s welfare, their reduction would nonetheless have a large impact on the poor.
Prices of basic foodstuffs and transportation would follow suit and increase significantly.
Ahok explained that optimizing the KJP and KJS cards was one of the city’s main strategies to mitigate the fuel-price increase. The city administration provides financial support to students via the KJP cards.
“We must optimize the cards so that citizens’ ability to pay for health and education is not endangered by the fuel-price hike,” Ahok said.
He added that the city would work to provide more Transjakarta buses so commuters would have an alternative to buying the more expensive fuel for their private vehicles.
Ahok further revealed that the city administration would consider increasing workers’ minimum wage by 10 percent. Currently, the minimum wage in Jakarta stands at Rp2.4 million per month.
“With the fuel-price hike, prices of basic food and goods will increase. So the minimum wage also needs to increase. We will adjust the minimum wage in line with the increase in fuel prices, but we can project that the minimum wage will be increased by about 10 percent,” he said.
Ahok added that the TPID must also control and oversee regional inflation. The TPID, he said, had to curb further inflation caused by the increase in fuel prices.
ANTARA NEWS | DEWANTI AW | JP
