Army chief warns against panic buying
JAKARTA (JP): Army Chief of Staff Gen. Wiranto lamented yesterday unfounded rumors on the shortage of basic commodities which had triggered panic buying, and warned people against stockpiling daily needs for their own benefit.
Wiranto said the stockpiling buyers could be charged with committing crimes or even subversion for causing unrest.
"The Armed Forces will not hesitate to take actions against those who take advantage of the economic crisis," Wiranto said on the sidelines of a People's Consultative Assembly meeting yesterday.
He said the Armed Forces is undertaking all measures to combat rumors across the archipelago, including safeguarding the commodities to ensure that people can buy basic necessities. The military have also been deployed to calm the public, according to Wiranto.
"I call on the public not to trust the baseless rumors, which are intended to shake national stability and in the end to threaten the government's legitimacy," he said.
He said he suspected that certain groups were behind the rumors and that the security authorities are now searching for those groups.
Wiranto said people would not have resorted to panic buying at traditional markets and supermarkets had they believed that stocks of basic commodities were sufficient.
Businessman Bambang Trihatmodjo joined in the criticism against those involved in panic buying, saying that they were vulnerable to rumors.
"People should not react excessively to the crisis. The government has ensured that there will be no scarcity of daily needs," he said.
He called on the nation to join forces and help the government cope with the crisis. "We will be strong if we unite, as we did in the past," he said.
Chief of the United Development Party (PPP) faction in the House of Representatives, Hamzah Haz, said the panic buying was irrational, and urged the government to take concrete efforts to end the economic turmoil.
"All cabinet ministers, despite the fact they have only two months left to end their terms, must work hard and advise the President without waiting for him to ask for it," Hamzah said.
He said the rupiah free-fall against the U.S. dollar should not inspire the government to devalue the currency as it would only cause people to lose their confidence in the rupiah further.
Economic observer Bambang Warih predicted that mounting international pressure would hit Indonesia for unveiling a disappointingly modest state budget. He said it triggered a new plunge of currencies in some countries.
"The state budget has raised (questions) as to the government's seriousness in coping with the economic crisis," said the former legislator.
Panic
Uncertainty about the adequacy of the supply of basic commodities continued to prevail in some parts of the country yesterday. Traditional markets and supermarkets in Yogyakarta saw an influx of shoppers.
Prices were higher than ever.
In the Kotagede market, the IR-type or C4-type rice sold for Rp 2,300 per kilogram, Rp 300 higher than the previous day. The higher quality types of rice such as Rojo Lele, Cianjur, and Delanggu doubled to Rp 3,500 per kilogram.
"We just raised the price to follow the market. Otherwise, I would no longer be able to trade," said Mbok Ikem, a rice seller at the market.
The same price increase occurred at other traditional markets such as Beringharjo, Kranggan, and Sentul, where buyers queued in front of stalls since dawn yesterday.
The price of other daily needs such as sugar, cooking oil, pepper, and eggs rose sharply yesterday. Sugar was sold at Rp 2,200 per kilo, compared to the previous price of Rp 1,600. Cooking oil doubled from Rp 2,100 to Rp 4,300 per liter. Eggs sold at Rp 3,600 per kilo, a 50 percent price hike.
In some smaller shops, owners even refused to sell their merchandise due to the unstable price.
A long line of edgy buyers were seen in many of the ancient city's supermarkets such as Alfa and Hero on Jl. Solo, Gelael on Jl. Sudirman, and Mirota Kampus on Jl. Cik Di Tiro.
However, at least six supermarkets such as Super Ekonomi Malioboro, Matahari Malioboro, Galeria, Progo, Pamor, and Cemara Tujuh remained closed yesterday due to the fluctuating price.
In Bandung, panic buying was also apparent with people seen withdrawing their money from automatic teller machines.
Most of them took to the crowded stores and markets yesterday, shopping for basic commodities.
Head of the West Java logistics agency Chaerudin urged people not to worry about the stocks of rice and other daily needs, claiming that the agency had a sufficient supply.
He said the agency supplied 100,000 tons to feed 30 million people in the province for the next three months, until the harvest in April.
"There will be an additional 67,500 tons of rice coming from outside West Java such as Central and East Java and South Sulawesi this month," he added.
In Medan, North Sumatra Military Chief Maj. Gen. Rizal Nurdin told residents to rest be assured that the supply of basic commodities was sufficient.
"The stock is more than enough," he told the media after a coordinating meeting with local legislators, Medan mayoralty administration, and the local logistics agency.
The same frenzy was seen in Ujungpandang, the capital of South Sulawesi, where basic necessities' price rose by up to 50 percent yesterday. (43/23/44/21/30/swa/aan/amd)