"There is no need to be suspicious as the general elections are still a long way off," Hatta said.
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Chief economic minister Hatta Radjasa called on all parties not to suspect the government`s conditional direct cash handout program (BLT) for the poor as a form of campaign to win voters sympathy ahead of the 2014 general elections.

"There is no need to be suspicious as the general elections are still a long way off," he said at the presidential palace here on Tuesday.

He said the conditional BLT program was a social protection program to help the poorest group of Indonesians improve their education and health conditions.

He said the government wished to help the needy and so he hoped people would not suspect it as a campaign program for the 2014 general elections.

"How could the government be suspected for helping its own people," he said.

The National Team for the Acceleration of Poverty Eradication (TNP2K) on January 20, 2012 announced around 1.2 families out of the 30 million poorest people are to receive conditional BLT worth Rp1.3 million to Rp2.2 million a year.

It is hoped the number of the recipients of the BLT under the Hopeful Family Program (PKH) would increase up to three millions in 2014.

Unlike the BLT program that has been carried out so far the new conditional BLT would only be given to families put under the PKH category based on certain conditions such as they still have under five year old children or school children and go to community health care centers (Puskesmas) when their children are sick.

The Statistics Agency (BPS) has recently issued an integrated data base (BDT) containing data of families targeted in the program that has been given to TNP2K. The data records 40 percent of families with the lowest income in Indonesia and this will be used by the government in its poverty alleviation efforts.

Among the programs prepared by the government to improve the welfare of the people are the conditional BLT extension, community health insurance, extension of rice for the poor and subsidy for students of the poor families.(*)

Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2012