"The condition in 1998 is far different from now. A monetary crisis occurred then, but it does not now. Public confidence in the government of Jokowi is still very high, while in 1998, public trust in Soeharto had plunged," he noted in a written statement received here on Saturday.
He remarked that the strong confidence in Jokowi was inseparable from the performance of his government that has indeed been good coupled with President Jokowi`s firm anti-corruption stance.
He said various achievements that President Jokowi had made, especially in infrastructure development, indicated that his government had really focused on work.
"Jokowi is honest, He is not corrupt. The money is used for development. That is what had made the trust in the government strong," the communication science professor of the top state university remarked.
He said the strong trust in Jokowi was indeed far above the condition during former president Soeharto`s era when the monetary crisis occurred in 1998. At the time, corruption was rife within Soeharto`s inner circle, including his cronies and children.
Moreover, Soeharto`s children, who were involved in business, used to borrow from banks and did not repay, Budyatna noted.
The low confidence in Soeharto was proven by the withdrawal of 14 ministers in charge of economy, finance, and industry.
Economic observer from Mulawarman University Aji Sofyan Effendi shared Budyatna`s view, saying that the current case of rupiah depreciation was far different from that in 1998.
"It is far different. From the point of view of various macro-economic indicators, our condition now is far stronger than in 1998, and so, it is not worrying," he stated.
The economic fundamentals in the Soeharto era were weak as proven by the fact that when other Southeast Asian countries recovered, Indonesia did not, he stated.
He said Singapore and Malaysia recovered fast as well, but Thailand`s baht currency suffered the maximum depreciation.
"Instead of recovering from the rupiah depreciation in 1998, it even led to a more complex crisis ranging from monetary to trust and politics leading to the fall of Soeharto," he added.
Unlike in 1998, the economic fundamentals that were built by Jokowi were strong, so it would be impossible for the current rupiah`s depreciation to lead to a monetary crisis or let alone public trust in the government, he stated.
Two macroeconomic indicators that showed how strong the economic fundamentals now are economic growth and inflation, respectively at 5.2-5.3 percent and below five percent.
"Economic growth and inflation are the most important indicators. They are like the heart of a human body. As they are still strong, we can assure Indonesian condition is secure," he added.
Reporting by Syaiful Hakim
Editing by Yoseph Hariyadi
Reporter: Antara
Editor: Yosep Hariyadi
Copyright © ANTARA 2018
