Yogyakarta, NU Online
The government should not consider the mounting price hike of the farmer rice as a reason to support its plans to import rice next month. The price hike of the farmer rice understandably caused by the previously raising fuel price should be a reasonable argument.   

The statement above was said by Vice Chairman of the Nahdlatul Ulama Regional Board of Yogyakarta, KH Maksum to NU Online on Wednesday (6/9). The fuel price hike admitted or not has caused all of the farmers’ necessities increase, such as seed price, tractor, fertilizer and so forth.

<>“If the government allowed to enjoy the fuel price hike, why were the farmers forbidden to enjoy the rice price hike. That’s reasonable. Do not regard that the farmers have got huge advantages of the recent rice price hike,” he said.

Dealing with the government’s plans to import rice, Secretary General of Indonesian Farmers Union Federation, Hendry Saragih suggested that many farmers have been the victims of those enjoying such tricks to support the government to import rice.

Speaking to the press in Jakarta several days ago, Alfridel Jinu of the House of Representatives (DPR)`s Commission for Agriculture, Plantation, Forestry and Fishery feared the government plans to import rice would further marginalize farmers.

"The plan to import rice is a symbol of complicated national food security," he said commenting on the government’s lobbies to a number of lawmakers for rice imports.

while, according to Vice Chairman of the House of Representatives, Muhaimin Iskandar said that the government did not have accurate data to convince the House of Representatives (DPR) that the rice imports were urgent.

“Coordinating minister for economic affairs  is good and careful enough, but he likely clumsy (to take actions),” Muhaimin said in Semarang on Tuesday (5/9). (nam)