Denpasar Mayor Apologizes to Prabowo and Social Affairs Minister Over BPJS Health Issue
Denpasar, CNN Indonesia – Denpasar Mayor I Gusti Ngurah Jaya Negara apologized regarding his statement about the deactivation of Health Insurance Contribution Assistance (PBI JK) for BPJS Health. He did so in response to a statement by Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf (Gus Ipul).
Previously, Gus Ipul had asked the Denpasar Mayor to apologize and retract his statement, which was deemed misleading.
Jaya Negara stated he was apologizing to President Prabowo Subianto and the Minister of Social Affairs.
“As the Mayor of Denpasar, I apologize to the President and the Minister of Social Affairs for our statement claiming that the President instructed the Minister of Social Affairs to deactivate PBI beneficiaries in Deciles 6 to 10, totaling 24,401 people in Denpasar City,” Jaya Negara said in his statement on Saturday (14/2).
Jaya Negara stated there was no such intention and that his statement was referring to Presidential Instruction (Inpres) Number 4 of 2025 on the National Single Social and Economic Data (DTSEN).
“Honestly, we had no such intention whatsoever. What we meant was that the President issued Instruction Number 4 of 2025 on DTSEN, which aims to improve data accuracy so that it is better targeted, effective, and efficient,” he explained.
“Based on this data, Minister of Social Affairs Decree Number 4, Point C, states that health insurance contribution assistance recipients use Deciles 1 to 5,” he continued.
He then received a report from BPJS Health that 24,401 PBI beneficiaries in Deciles 6 to 10 had been deactivated in Denpasar City.
“For that reason, we held a meeting and invited BPJS Health Denpasar. We wanted to adopt a policy to reactivate the deactivated data using Denpasar city budget (APBD) funds, so that our residents continue to receive BPJS Health services in Denpasar City,” he said.
Previously, Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf (Gus Ipul) asked Denpasar Mayor I Gusti Ngurah Jaya Negara to retract his statement, which was considered misleading to the public regarding the deactivation of Health Insurance Contribution Assistance (PBI) recipients.
In a media interview, the Denpasar Mayor claimed the deactivation of PBI BPJS Health was the result of a presidential instruction through the Ministry of Social Affairs to deactivate PBI for Deciles 6 to 10.
Gus Ipul emphasized that the statement had caused public confusion because it was far from the facts.
“That statement is misleading and has truly confused the public, because what was conveyed is far from the facts. It made it seem as though the President instructed the deactivation of PBI. This is truly misleading,” Gus Ipul said after coordinating on PBI reporting with the Indonesian Consumers Foundation on Friday (13/2).
Gus Ipul stated there was no instruction from President Prabowo Subianto as claimed in the Denpasar Mayor’s statement. On that basis, Gus Ipul requested that the statement be immediately retracted and accompanied by a public apology.
“I ask the Denpasar Mayor to retract his statement and apologize. This must not be allowed to be perceived as truth,” he said.
As is known, the Denpasar Mayor had previously revealed that there was a presidential instruction through the Ministry of Social Affairs to deactivate PBI BPJS Health patients in Deciles 6 to 10.
“Indeed, there is currently a presidential instruction through the Ministry of Social Affairs to deactivate BPJS Health for Deciles 6 to 10. It so happens that Denpasar was affected, with 24,401 people,” Jaya Negara said on Tuesday (10/2).