"The ministry's PKTN has taken down 6,678 links from several marketplaces and confiscated 937 carton boxes consisting of 11,246 liters (of MinyaKita oil) from some merchants selling the product on social media, such as Facebook and Instagram," Minister Zulkifli Hasan informed in a statement issued here on Thursday.
The minister said that action is being taken against the merchants who violated regulations regarding the sale of MinyaKita, which led to a drop in cooking oil supply in the market and pushed the price of oil above its highest retail price of Rp14 thousand (US$0.89).
The supervision has been conducted according to Law No. 8 of 1999 on Consumer Protection and Law No. 7 of 2014 on Trade, as amended by Law No. 11 of 2022 on Job Creation, he disclosed.
Hasan urged merchants not to exploit the high demand for cooking oil among the people.
Merchants producing and selling MinyaKita must also observe the Trade Minister’s Regulation No. 49 of 2022 on cooking oil program management, he added.
"Cooking oil products packaged as MinyaKita products must not be sold beyond the Rp14 thousand highest retail price and without any purchase restriction," the minister said.
Meanwhile, Director General Veri Anggrijono said that merchants found selling MinyaKita products at prices above the highest retail price online will be sanctioned.
The sanctions will involve a written warning and grave violations will lead to a revocation of trade and business permits, based on Article 80 of Government Regulation No. 80 of 2019 and Article 23 of Trade Minister’s Regulation No. 49 of 2022, he informed.
"The Trade Ministry will also coordinate with regional authorities to ensure the product is sold according to its mandated retail price," Anggrijono said.
He added that merchants selling MinyaKita products illegally via social media could have their social media accounts blocked by the Ministry of Communication and Informatics.
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Translator: Maria Cicilia, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
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