Jusuf Kalla: Highest Welfare Gap Visibly Seen in Jakarta
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9 October 2019 19:03 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Vice President Jusuf Kalla laments the high public welfare gap in Indonesia, in which the highest gap is reportedly in the capital city of Jakarta.
“The most luxurious residential complex is located in Jakarta, but the most deteriorating house is in Jakarta too,” said the VP during his speech in the final report of the National Team for the Acceleration of Poverty Alleviation (TNP2K), in Vice Presidential State Palace, Central Jakarta, Wednesday, Oct. 9.
The main task of the TNP2K led by Kalla is tackling the welfare gap. Since it was first established in 2015, the team successfully lowered the poverty rate to 9.41 percent in March 2019, from initially 11.2 percent in March 2015.
However, that is not in line with the welfare gap that is still visible, especially in Jakarta, Kalla noted. Despite the decreasing Gini ratio, which measures income inequality, there is still a concentration of state assets in the minority group of rich Indonesians.
The team executive secretary Bambang Widianto said that considering the plural society of Indonesia, the acceleration to drop this disparity is essential. According to Bambang, the most effective way, that is applied by other countries, is by enhancing the effectiveness of taxation.
Jusuf Kalla admitted that the tax sector could be the solution to the welfare gap. He said that the high gap must be solved by providing more income to low-class people. “And of course, better taxation policy and others for either high or low-class people,” the VP said.
EGI ADYATAMA