REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA — Chairman of the People's Consultative Assembly of Indonesia, Zulkifli Hasan, has urged the government to prevent the rice price hike, so as to avoid the additional burden to the society. Zulkifli, on the sidelines of carrying out his safari of nationality in Central Java's city of Semarang on Friday (Jan 12), said that the market operation of the staple food is one way of preventing the price hike.

"This (soaring price) must not be allowed; the people must not find it difficult to buy rice because of its high price, leading to food insecurity," he explained.

Therefore, the government should immediately conduct a massive market operation in order to suppress rogue traders who seek to hoard, while, at the same time, giving opportunities for people to buy the rice at affordable prices.  "Do not delay; do not let any member of the society experience food insecurity," Zulkifli reiterated.

In the meantime, Vice President Jusuf Kalla pointed out on Friday (Jan 12) that the Indonesian government has decided to import 500 thousand tons of rice due to the declining supply in the domestic market. 

According to the Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita, the plan to import 500 thousand tons of rice from Vietnam and Thailand by the end of January will be carried out without using the state budget. The decision to import rice was taken after the government, the State Logistics Agency (Bulog), and the special Task Force for Food conducted market operations in November and December 2017 to contain the rising prices of medium rice.

The operations did not significantly impact the price rise, considering that the prices peaked in early January 2018 to Rp11 thousand per kilogram, or above the specified ceiling of the retail price of Rp9,450 for Java Island. 

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