A poster titled “Indonesia Impoverished, a warning from Mrs. Sri” has been circulating, which was responded to by Yustinus Prastowo, a special staff member of the Minister of Finance, in a post on the account X @prastow.
1. Sri Mulyani is said to be disappointed that the Rp 63.8 trillion defense equipment procurement budget was approved by President Jokowi.
Clarification
Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati stated that the increase in defense equipment spending is reasonable and important for strengthening the country amid potential threats and the dynamics of foreign policy.
2. Defense equipment spending is being carried out by PT Teknologi Militer Indonesia, which is owned by Prabowo’s cronies.
Clarification
The statement came from PDIP Secretary General Hasto Kristiyanto, not the Minister of Finance. The Chairman of TMI is Major General Glenny Kairupan, and the CEO is Harsusanto, a close associate of Prabowo and who has received a letter of appointment from the Ministry of Defense to handle defense equipment procurement.
3. The South Sulawesi and North Sumatra provincial governments are unable to pay employee salaries.
Clarification
This is not a statement from the Ministry of Finance, despite reports that the South Sulawesi Regional Government is having difficulty paying short-term debts and that the salaries of 300 village heads in Simalungun, North Sumatra, have not been paid for the August-November 2023 period.
4. Sri Mulyani is disappointed and has resigned.
Clarification
There has been no statement from Finance Minister Sri Mulyani that she is resigning, despite circulating rumors. Sri Mulyani is still carrying out her duties to manage state finances.
5. Sri Mulyani’s suggestion to shift funds for defense equipment purchases to social assistance and the new capital was ignored by Jokowi.
Clarification
So far, social assistance has continued to be distributed smoothly and has even been increased due to the potential El Niño disaster.
6. Seven State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs) were declared bankrupt due to lack of funds.
Clarification
Deputy Minister of SOEs, Kartika Wirjoatmojo, stated that the seven SOEs were dissolved in the past four years because they did not contribute to state finances.
7. All state funds were spent to finance the Prabowo-Gibran campaign.
Clarification
No news source was found and no statement from the Minister of Finance regarding this matter was issued.
