There is an indication of price manipulation from certain parties that should be resolved soon.
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Speaker of the Regional Representative Council (DPD RI), AA LaNyalla Mahmud Mattalitti, has urged the government to issue a comprehensive policy to handle cooking oil scarcity, from upstream to downstream.

"Market operations in several regions will not completely resolve this issue. There should be an upstream to downstream policy," he said in a statement issued on Saturday.

"There is an indication of price manipulation from certain parties that should be resolved soon," he added.

The government should pay attention to the people's struggle in running small businesses, he said. Meanwhile, major entrepreneurs are reaping benefits from high crude palm oil (CPO) prices, he added.

"Our people have been dealing with rising cooking oil prices for four months. This will affect the economic recovery of lower-class citizens who are still reeling from the impact of the pandemic," he emphasized.

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In addition, the largest consumers of cooking oil are ultra-micro, micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), he said. They will feel the impact of high and unstable cooking oil prices the most, he added.

Mattalitti also highlighted the North Sumatra Food Task Force finding 1.1 million kg of cooking oil hoarded in one warehouse in Deli Serdang.

"Authorities should always monitor and investigate producers and distributors to prevent hoarding," he said.

Observing this fact, he urged the government to strengthen coordination with entrepreneurs and producers in ensuring supply availability for the public.

"The government's coordination with entrepreneurs to implement cooking oil policy, both policies related to refraction and DMO (Domestic Market Obligation) should be strong," he stressed.

"The technical aspect of the on-field implementation should be accurate. Lastly, they should be stringent toward entrepreneurs so that they do not intentionally hoard supply for a certain motive," he added.
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Translator: Sella Gareta, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Suharto
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