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resident Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has dismissed opposition concerns that a plan to start disbursing funds to every subdistrict in the country could be a bid to win over voters ahead of next year’s presidential election.

The Finance Ministry has announced that the subdistrict fund will be around Rp 3 trillion (US$197 million), which will be taken from the existing village fund program.

As there are a total of 8,545 subdistricts in the country’s urban areas, each will receive around Rp 350 million.

Politicians from the Gerindra Party and the Prosperous Justice Party (PKS), the major drivers behind an alliance that has backed Gerindra Party chairman Prabowo Subianto against Jokowi in next year’s presidential election, questioned the suddenness of the plan.

“It wasn’t previously included in the 2019 state budget plan. Why do they suddenly want the funds to be included in the bill without any proper regulation, months prior to the presidential election?” PKS senior politician Hidayat Nur Wahid said.

Gerindra lawmaker Nizar Zahro said on Tuesday that Jokowi never said anything about the plan for subdistrict funding in his financial note speech on Aug. 16.

“We have no mention of a subdistrict fund. The government should not push it,” Nizar said.

Yandri Susanto, a lawmaker from the National Mandate Party (PAN), which also supports Prabowo, said the plan to fund all subdistricts was a good one. Unfortunately, Jokowi might use it as a campaign tool.
“We should stress to the public that this is not from Jokowi, this is not about Jokowi. There should be an agreement between the House of Representatives and the government,” Yandri said.

Meanwhile, lawmaker Budi Sudjatmiko of the ruling Indonesian Democratic party of Struggle (PDI-P) said the plan following demands from several mayors, including Bogor Mayor Bima Arya and former Bandung mayor Ridwan Kamil, both in West Java, and residents regarding operational funding at the subdistrict level.

Home Minister Tjahjo Kumolo previously said the government could use Article 230 of the 2014 Regional Administration Law to legalize the subdistrict fund. However, the regulation does not stipulate a transfer mechanism for subdistrict funding or how the funds should be allocated.

The government has disbursed village funds to every village since 2015.

Although a village in a regency is at the same level as a subdistrict in a municipality, village administrations are regulated under the 2014 Village Law and the 2014 Government Regulation on village funds.

In 2018, the government allocated a total of Rp 60 trillion in village funds, disbursed to 75,957 villages across the country.

For next year, the government has allocated a total of Rp 73 trillion.

President Jokowi has rejected any political motivation behind the funds.

Speaking at an event where he was distributing land certificates in South Jakarta, Jokowi said the subdistrict fund would be allocated to repair infrastructure such as roads and drainage systems.

“This is the government’s commitment to the people, not for anyone else, so don’t equate this issue with politics,” he said. “Too many things are being equated with politics, while there is so much more to life than politics, such as social issues, the economy and culture.”

Jokowi told the public to be careful about politicians who tried to influence them with their remarks. “Be careful, there are many good politicians but there are also many foolish ones.”