Responding to Sharp Public Criticism, Vice President Gibran Vows to Overhaul Free Nutritious Meals Programme

Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - The Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) programme, one of the government’s priority initiatives, continues to draw public scrutiny due to corruption cases and food poisoning incidents. Alongside MBG, the public has also heavily criticised the Red and White Village Cooperatives (KDMP), whose implementation is considered reckless and poorly targeted. Responding to the torrent of public criticism, the Vice President has pledged to thoroughly overhaul the governance of these two priority programmes. “The government is committed to improving the governance of MBG and KDMP to ensure every rupiah truly benefits the community and that programme execution is more targeted, effective, efficient, and free from corrupt practices,” Vice President Gibran said in a written statement on Wednesday (17/6). “This step is important to maintain public trust and enhance the government’s fiscal capacity, thereby increasing market confidence in the national economy.” Previously, Vice President Gibran had also received representatives of students who staged protests at several locations in Jakarta on Monday (15/6) afternoon. One of the demonstrators’ main demands was urging the government to stop wasting the state budget (APBN) and to evaluate populist programmes. According to Gibran, the government is open to criticism and input conveyed in an orderly and constructive manner, and all aspirations expressed will serve as evaluation material for the government.