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Government resumes rice aid delivery one day after election
National Food Agency (Bapanas) head Arief Prasetyo Adi said the distribution of rice aid resumed on Thursday, one day after the election.
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President Joko “Jokowi“ Widodo (second left) throws T-shirts on Feb. 1, 2024, to residents of Telukan village in Sukoharjo, Central Java, while visiting the region. During the visit, Jokowi began the disbursement of 10 kilograms of rice to 22 million low-income people, which will run until June. (Antara/Mohammad Ayudha)
T
he government will soon resume the delivery of rice aid, which was paused for the Feb. 14 general election campaigning and voting.
National Food Agency (Bapanas) head Arief Prasetyo Adi said the distribution of rice aid resumed on Thursday, one day after the election.
Arief told reporters during a site visit to the Cipinang Central Rice Market in East Jakarta on Wednesday that rice is still much needed by consumers.
"Rice is still needed by consumers and this program will also reduce demand from the market," Arief said, referring to the surge in the demand for premium quality rice in recent weeks.
In the lead-up to the Feb. 14 presidential election, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has increased the amount of rice distributed to the country's poor under the guise of social assistance (Bansos).
In January, the government postponed the delivery of rice aid following criticism that the program was politically motivated.
Data from Bapanas shows that in the first month of 2024, the government distributed 185,000 tons of rice. The target for delivery in the first two months of the year is 440,000 tons.
