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Finance Ministry to halt disbursement of village funds over irregularities
The Finance Ministry will temporarily stop the disbursement of village funds to some villages in Konawe regency, Southeast Sulawesi, in response to irregularities found in the application for and use of the funds.
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Struggle of life -- Two women carry grass for cattle in Parangbatu village, Tuban, East Java. The central government has disbursed Rp 52 trillion (US$3.68 billion) to villages across the country so far this year. (Antara/Aguk Sudarmojo)
The Finance Ministry will temporarily stop the disbursement of village funds to some villages in Konawe regency, Southeast Sulawesi, in response to irregularities found in the application for and use of the funds.
The ministry has promised to resume payouts once the Home Ministry has sorted out the irregularities and ascertained compliance with Law No. 6/2014 on villages.
The village funds, a signature policy of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to spread economic development to more than 75,000 villages in the country, have become one of the main funding sources of village administrations, a Home Ministry official has said.
Finance Ministry Financial Balance Director General Astera Primanto Bhakti said the ministry would halt the disbursement of the village funds to some villages pending the Home Ministry’s investigation into the matter.
“We will resume the disbursement once there is clarification on the villages’ status,” Astera said in a discussion in Jakarta on Tuesday.
The central government had disbursed Rp 52 trillion (US$3.68 billion) to villages as of November, around 74 percent of the Rp 70 trillion earmarked for the village funds in this year’s state budget, Astera added.
The transfer of village funds is in the spotlight since Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati disclosed that many villages were established just to receive such funds, despite having no population.
