Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives Sufmi Dasco Ahmad has\nasked the government to suspend plans to import 105,000 vehicles from\nIndia to support the logistics operations of the Merah Putih Village\nCooperatives. The Gerindra Party daily chairman argued that the plan\nrequires further review with President Prabowo Subianto, who is\ncurrently on a state visit to the United States.<\/p>\n
\u201cI have conveyed a message to the government that the plan should be\npostponed given that the President is still abroad,\u201d Dasco said at the\nHouse of Representatives complex in Jakarta on Monday, 23 February\n2026.<\/p>\n
He recommended that the technical details of the pickup truck import\nplan from India be discussed comprehensively with President Prabowo.\nDasco expressed confidence that the Gerindra Party chairman would\ndiscuss the import plan whilst taking into account the condition of the\ndomestic automotive industry.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe President will certainly seek opinions and calculate the\nreadiness of domestic companies,\u201d Dasco said.<\/p>\n
The government plans to bring in 105,000 pickup trucks from India at\nan estimated value of Rp 24.66 trillion. The president director of PT\nAgrinas Pangan Nusantara \u2014 the state-owned enterprise appointed to\naccelerate the operations of the Merah Putih Village Cooperatives \u2014 Joao\nAngelo De Sousa Mota confirmed the vehicle procurement plan for both the\nMerah Putih Village Cooperatives and the Merah Putih Sub-district\nCooperatives. He confirmed that fully assembled units have already\narrived in Indonesia, though he did not disclose the quantity.<\/p>\n
The vehicles will be used for Merah Putih Village Cooperative\noperations across 85,000 villages. Through Agrinas Pangan Nusantara, the\ngovernment is targeting the construction of 30,000 Merah Putih Village\nCooperative buildings by mid-2026.<\/p>\n
House Commission VI member Rachmat Gobel criticised the Indian car\nimport plan, arguing it potentially contradicts the government\u2019s\npriority agenda, particularly job creation and strengthening national\nindustry.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis plan for mass car imports using state-owned enterprise funds\ndoes not support Astacita at all \u2014 it in fact violates Astacita by\nsquandering state funds to finance foreign workers and another country\u2019s\nindustry,\u201d Rachmat said.<\/p>\n
He stressed that fiscal policy and the role of state-owned\nenterprises should serve as instruments to drive domestic industry and\nabsorb the workforce, especially vocational education graduates who are\nwidely employed in the automotive sector. Rachmat also emphasised that\nIndonesia\u2019s automotive industry has developed an extensive production\nand service network, with steadily increasing local content levels.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/dasco-requests-postponement-of-car-imports-for-merah-putih-cooperatives-1771891765", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }