PDIP Proposes Temporary Halt to Free Nutritious Meals Programme During School Holidays Amid Alleged Rp 1 Trillion Monthly Waste
Deputy Chairman of House Commission IX and PDIP executive Charles Honoris has responded to statements by Coordinating Minister for Food Zulkifli Hasan regarding a surge in the number of Nutritional Fulfilment Service Units (SPPG). Charles stated that the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) programme should be temporarily halted during the school holidays.
“I believe Mr Zulhas’s statement must serve as a serious alarm for all parties. If there is indeed potential wastage of up to Rp 1 trillion per month, this cannot be taken lightly. Moreover, the country’s fiscal condition is currently under considerable pressure, and the budgetary needs in other sectors are no less significant,” Charles told journalists on Friday (12/6/2026).
Charles suggested that the upcoming school holidays be used as an opportunity to temporarily suspend the MBG programme. This pause would allow for a thorough evaluation of the programme’s governance. “In my view, the momentum of the approaching school holidays can be utilised to temporarily halt the implementation of the MBG programme while conducting a comprehensive evaluation of its management. This evaluation is crucial so the government can objectively assess what has been working well and what needs improvement,” he stated.
House Commission IX also urged the government to audit all operational SPPG kitchens. He argued this would help prevent further cases of food poisoning among students. “During this evaluation period, the government must audit all operational SPPG kitchens, covering aspects of food safety, food quality, budget efficiency, and procurement governance. Kitchens proven to not meet standards or that have repeatedly caused food poisoning cases should not merely receive a warning but must be permanently closed,” he said.
“We must not forget that to date, more than 40,000 children have fallen victim to food poisoning in the implementation of this programme. Therefore, safety and service quality must be the top priority,” he added.
He expressed hope that the success parameters of the MBG programme would not be measured solely by the number of beneficiaries or the amount of budget spent. The crucial point, he said, is that the programme successfully improves the nutritional status of children in need. “So in my opinion, this school holiday momentum should be used to carry out a thorough overhaul,” said the PDIP legislator.
“Do not let the pursuit of quantitative targets cause us to neglect quality, food safety, and the effectiveness of state spending. A good programme is one that truly provides benefits, not merely one that produces large numbers of beneficiaries,” he continued.
Coordinating Minister for Food Zulkifli Hasan had earlier revealed a surge of more than 13,000 SPPG points or MBG kitchens. This figure combines MBG kitchens in underdeveloped, frontier, and outermost (3T) regions and those outside 3T areas. Zulhas linked the surge in kitchen points to alleged buying and selling of points. Outside the 3T regions, the initial projection was 21,000 kitchens, but the latest data shows 27,877 points. “For example, there has been buying and selling of points. The initial plan was for 21,000 points, but now there are 27,877 points. So, there is a surge of 6,877 points. This is based on a report from Mrs Nanik earlier,” Zulhas said after a coordination meeting at the Coordinating Ministry for Food building on Thursday (11/6). He added that there was a plan for 2,000 SPPG points in 3T regions, but findings showed 8,617 points.