Govt Not Needs House Approval To Raise Subsidized Fuel Price

Jakarta, April 16 (Antara) - The government does not need a seal of approval from the House of Representatives (DPR) to raise the price of subsidized fuels, a legislator said. "Under the 2013 state budget law, the government can change fuel oil prices without a seal of approval from the DPR," member of the House Commission VI Dito Ganinduto said here on Tuesday. The government is planning to raise the price of subsidized gasoline for private cars as part of efforts to lower rising fuel subsidy. Motorcycles, public transport cars and cargo vehicles will continue to receive subsidy. The price of subsidized fuel is now Rp4,500 a liter. But the government is still undecided about when and how much the price of subsidized fuels will be raised. Dito said the government should take an immediate step with regard to the fuel subsidy. "The subsidized fuel oil discourse has been going on for a quite long time and has turned counter-productive. Both the public and business world are waiting for certainty about what policy the government will take," he said. The great disparity between the subsidized price and the market price of fuel oil had led to abuse of subsidy and had not encouraged the public to switch to alternative energy such as bio-fuel and gas, he noted. He said scarcity in diesel oil supply in a number of regions in the country in recent weeks had disrupted the continuation of economic activities in the regions concerned. He said the policy to raise the price of fuels for private cars must be accompanied by a proper compensation program.