Pertamina's responsibility

For decades, Pertamina has held a monopoly on the production of fuel, with the recent exception of certain products such as premix-grade gasoline. The consequences are felt by us all: the company has become difficult to control, sluggish and riddled with corruption, collusion and nepotism. The Balongan refinery is a good example, so there is no need for anyone to be surprised if things there get broken so easily.

Pertamina cannot even overcome problems whose nature is clear to everyone and that are reported in the media. Just consider the way they tried to solve the problem of fuel smuggling a few months ago. And this happened in Jakarta, right under the noses of Pertamina officials. At the time the case was uncovered, the minister of mining promised to look into the matter. The result? The case was never heard of again.

People are now speculating that a political plot is behind the fuel shortage of the past couple of days. But whether such speculation is warranted, the case proves that doubts about Pertamina's management are justified. What is important is that the speculation of a political plot is not used to cover up the shortcomings at Pertamina. Pertamina must explain the recent fuel shortage and not try to wash its hands of the matter on any pretext.

-- Republika, Jakarta