Layers of the Garlic Corruption Scandal

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The price of garlic skyrockets at the start every year, going over Rp50,000 per kilogram. Due to the government’s requirement to plant garlic in the import quota system, garlic prices in the country are consistently high, even when prices in its exporting country, China, are under Rp10,000 per kilogram. With an annual profit of up to Rp8.4 trillion, garlic import regulations are creating illegal fees in the permit issuing process. As a result, prices continue to soar and the commodity is controlled by a number of companies with import quotas and the power to withhold or pour garlic into the market.

IN early February, garlic supply at Anas Sarnil’s kiosk at the Kramat Jati Market, East Jakarta, shrank. On February 7, only 100 sacks of garlic were piled at the nine-square-meter stall. “Usually (it’s) full, now there isn’t enough,” said the 52-year-old vendor.

Before February, Anas sold 15 tons of garlic per week. Importers would take turns calling him to offer garlic from China. “Now I’m calling the importers one by one,” he said. “(I) only got 4 tons.” Because of the scarcity, garlic prices in the past week rose to Rp45,000 per kilogram. Anas says he was still selling garlic at Rp20,000 per kilogram in December 2019.

Anas suspects that importers are withholding the garlic in their warehouses. Signs that this would happen were already evident last year. Importers told Anas that the agriculture ministry had not approved their Horticultural Products Import Recommendation (RIPH) that they requested. As a result, importers had not been granted their garlic import permits in January 2020.

In 2019, the agriculture ministry only issued RIPHs at the end of March, two months later than the previous year. Because of this, the price of garlic went up last year starting in January, reaching its peak in May at Rp50,000 per kilogram. “Garlic price rises every start of the year,” said Hariadi Propantoko from the People’s Coalition for Food Sovereignty.

According to Hariadi, garlic price has fluctuated since 2017, one year after National Democrat (NasDem) Party politician Enggartiasto Lukita became trade minister. Imports can only be performed after a trader receives an Import Approval Letter (SPI) from the trade ministry, in reference to the agriculture ministry’s recommendation.

Prihasto Setyanto, agriculture ministry director-general of horticulture, denies that the garlic scarcity is due to his tardiness in issuing RIPHs. When asked about the topic on January 10, he said RIPHs were not yet issued because there is still enough supply to last until March. “They have been issued,” he said on February 7.

Read the Complete Story in this Week's Edition of Tempo English Magazine