Sahroni: Police Must Be More Proactive in Protecting the MBG Programme
The Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) programme has recently come under scrutiny following several cases of food poisoning in various regions, including the discovery of unusual objects such as centipedes in the food.
These conditions have raised suspicions of intentional acts or sabotage, although this remains to be proven. The Head of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN), Sudaryono, previously stated that any indications of sabotage in the implementation of the MBG would be handed over to the police.
Responding to this situation, the Deputy Chairman of Commission III of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR RI), Ahmad Sahroni, has requested that the National Police (Polri) be more proactive in guarding the MBG programme, against both potential negligence and suspected intentional disruptions.
“The police have a significant responsibility in safeguarding the MBG programme. The increasing frequency and severity of MBG poisoning incidents—ranging from finding centipedes to fatal poisoning—demonstrate that deeper supervision is required during the field processes. Therefore, in addition to evaluating the cooking systems in kitchens, the BGN and Polri must also be vigilant against disruptions from parties who may intentionally seek to create a negative impression of this programme and the President, even though this remains an assumption,” Sahroni stated in a written statement on Thursday, 17 September 2026.
According to Sahroni, oversight needs to be strengthened from the production process through to distribution, while simultaneously ensuring that the causes of every case can be fully uncovered.
“Therefore, in addition to the BGN needing to conduct evaluations, the National Police must also be more proactive and increase their role in the MBG programme. This includes monitoring from the kitchens to the delivery process, as there is potential for disruption at those stages. Most importantly, the root causes of these existing cases must be thoroughly investigated,” said Sahroni.