Herman & Made Arya Kencana – Activists have called for the government to conduct a thorough audit into Askes and Jamsostek, the two biggest state-run insurance companies, which on Wednesday were officially merged into a new provider offering universal coverage.
Said Iqbal, the secretary general of the non-governmental group Action Committee for Social Security (KAJS), said on Friday that without auditing the two companies, it was highly likely that the transfer of the trillions of rupiah in assets held by the two state enterprises under the newly established Social Security Organizing Body (BPJS) could be hijacked for political funding ahead of elections later this year.
Jamsostek, which insures formal sector employees, has assets worth Rp 147 trillion ($12 billion), while Askes, which provides health insurance for low-income citizens, has Rp 60 trillion in assets.
"Without an immediate audit, Rp 207 trillion of public funds could just disappear prior to the elections," Said warned. His call echoes similar statements made by others in October last year, when preparations for the launch of the BPJS were ramping up.
Rieke Dyah Pitaloka, a legislator with the opposition Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), said at the time that Jamsostek had not yet complied with a request from the House of Representatives to submit its investment portfolio, which, if published, could minimize the potential embezzlement of workers' funds. "We can't let the money of workers be used to fund corrupt political campaigns," she said.
On Friday, Agung Laksono, the coordinating minister for people's welfare, said the government would need Rp 100 trillion to enroll all citizens in the BPJS program. "If the public is covered, the money involved could amount to Rp 80 trillion to Rp 100 trillion," Agung said in Denpasar, where he was monitoring the implementation of the BPJS program on Friday.
He said that to date, Rp 40 trillion has been spent from the state budget to cover 121.6 million participants in the BPJS Health scheme, one of the two parts of the BPJS program. The other half, BPJS Manpower, will cover work-related accidents, retirement benefits and life insurance.
According to Agung, the Rp 40 trillion had gone toward providing supporting facilities and equipment at hospitals and community health centers where the BPJS Health is being implemented.