Jakarta (ANTARA) - Minister of Communications and Informatics Johnny G. Plate believes that affirmative action focused on preference to domestic products would bolster the domestic industry and production.

The affirmative action will be consistent with President Joko Widodo's (Jokowi's) call to ensure preference for domestic products is not a mere cosmetic action but is performed as a sincere intention to rev up the domestic industry.

"If anyone has an idea to cheat by labelling imported or foreign products as domestic-made, firm actions will be taken against perpetrators, particularly those in marketplaces," Plate noted during a hybrid press conference during the affirmative action for 2022 Proud of Indonesia-made Products programme in Nusa Dua, Bali, on Friday.

The minister reminded operators of digital platforms to be attentive in providing domestic product promotion opportunities and realizing affirmative actions to support domestic-made products.

"President Jokowi also reminded the government and state-owned enterprises that affirmative action should not merely be on paper but instead be implemented through concrete actions," he remarked.

The authority will conduct daily monitoring to ensure government ministries and institutions have realized their commitment through concrete actions to bolster the industry of domestic products, the minister noted.

"Otherwise, President Jokowi may decide to readjust his cabinet during a reshuffle," Plate stated.

Apart from the central government, the authority will also monitor regional authorities to ensure affirmative actions are firmly implemented with regard to domestic products, he stated.

"Fiscal actions will be taken to ensure regional authorities adhere to their commitment (to prioritize domestic products), including by controlling the special allocation fund and the general allocation fund," the minister remarked.

Furthermore, for state-owned enterprises that do not respect the commitment to prioritize domestic products and failed to achieve the percentage target for domestic products, the enterprise's board of commissioners would be subject to ministerial- and stakeholder-level evaluation, he noted.

"We are not intending to threaten but instead to remind all that this commitment must be fulfilled across all levels of the national hierarchy, from the president until the lowest level, as well as our business community," Plate stated.

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Translator: Arnidhya Nur Z, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Suharto
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