Zulhas: Natural Resources Must Be Controlled by the State, Not Private Interests
JAKARTA – Coordinating Minister for Food Zulkifli Hasan (Zulhas) has affirmed the importance of the state regaining control over the management of natural wealth. Zulhas said natural resources must be managed for the people’s interest and must not be excessively controlled by certain parties.
Zulhas said the management of natural wealth must be returned to the principles mandated by Pancasila and the 1945 Constitution. He assessed that businesspeople may still be involved in managing natural resources, but the authority to regulate and distribute their utilisation must rest in the state’s hands.
“Businesspeople are allowed, but the one that distributes is the government, the state,” Zulhas said at the Eighth Indonesian Muslim Congress (KUII VIII) at the Bidakara Hotel, Jakarta, on Saturday (25/7/2026).
According to Zulhas, this principle must not be inverted. Natural wealth, which belongs to the state, must be managed and its benefits distributed by the state for the public interest.
“Don’t invert it. This belongs to the state, so the state distributes it. The President has already set this straight,” he said.
Zulhas also highlighted the issue of natural resource control through regional licensing. He said such practices have occurred across various sectors, from gold mining, nickel, coal and tin to bauxite.
In his view, this situation means Indonesia’s natural wealth risks being enjoyed more by certain parties than by the state and the public. The Chairman of the National Mandate Party (PAN) touched on the potential for state revenue leakages through manipulation of production and export data.
He highlighted one practice of production figures not matching actual conditions. Zulhas gave the example of a discrepancy between the sale value of commodities abroad and the price reported in Indonesia.
“They sell at 20,000 but report 10,000 here. That’s a moral hazard,” Zulhas continued.
According to Zulhas, such practices can also occur with palm oil commodities. He said the matter must be put in order so that state revenue from economic and trade activities can be recorded transparently.
“Apart from the plantation sector, in mining and fisheries there are also practices of permit abuse, including the use of a single permit for many vessels,” Zulhas revealed.
Zulhas also admitted he had previously attempted to crack down on illegal mines in Bangka Belitung and palm oil plantations in North Sumatra under the previous administration. He said rectifying illegal natural resources is no easy matter because it involves strong networks and interests.
Zulhas said the government of President Prabowo Subianto is carrying out enforcement by deploying the state’s strength. He said the move has resulted in around four million hectares of illegal plantations being taken over by the state.
Zulhas then raised the issue of discrepancies between Indonesia’s export data and trade data from partner countries and international institutions. He said these data discrepancies need to be resolved so that potential state revenue is not lost.
“So all imports and exports now go through a single channel via DSI. Oh, everything gets exposed,” Zulhas continued.
Zulhas claimed the system has produced results in a relatively short time. According to him, within two months, management through the system has generated nearly US$20 billion in foreign exchange.
“In just two months, DSI has already generated nearly US$20 billion in foreign exchange. This is only two months — it used to be three to four billion US dollars,” Zulhas said.