Budi Djiwandono Emphasises Gerindra Cadres' Continued Oversight of Food Security

According to him, this step is taken following the achievement of rice self-sufficiency in December 2025, as well as an effort to support the smooth running of government programmes. This was conveyed by Budi during his inspection of Bulog’s assets and facilities in Balikpapan City, East Kalimantan, together with members of the Gerindra Faction in the Balikpapan and East Kalimantan DPRD. “We are synergising to ensure that food in East Kalimantan, especially in Balikpapan City, is available and affordable,” Budi said in a written statement on Tuesday (12/5/2026). During the inspection, Gerindra party cadres emphasised the importance of Bulog’s presence in maintaining national food stability, particularly in ensuring rice stock availability amid the continuously increasing needs of the population. “Inspecting Bulog’s assets in Balikpapan City is to see the availability and real conditions on the ground in Bulog’s sectors,” he stated. He assessed that Bulog holds a very strategic position in the national food ecosystem and thus requires full support, both in terms of policy and distribution infrastructure. “Considering Bulog’s presence in Indonesia’s food ecosystem is very important and strategic,” he added. From the direct field inspection results, Budi expressed gratitude as the food stock conditions were deemed still very sufficient to meet public needs. “I am pleased that this morning we could see directly that the stocks are very sufficient,” he said. Nevertheless, he emphasised that there are still several matters that need improvement to strengthen food distribution so that it becomes more effective and easily accessible to the public. “We noted that there are still improvements that may need to be pursued, whether in infrastructure improvements or policy aspects later to facilitate distribution access to the public,” Budi concluded.