President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono needs to ask his relevant ministers to take anticipatory steps in the face of a possible national economic turmoil after the government raised the basic power rates.
"The government needs to watch and take anticipatory steps over the upward trend of basic necessities` price following the electricity tariff hikes," Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Center for Information and Development Studies (CIDES) Ricky Rachmadi said here on Sunday.
He said that the electricity tariff rate increases which took effect on July 1, 2010, still sparked protests from various quarters.
The protests were lodged because businesses found that the range of increases was not in accordance with the government`s promises, he said.
"The rate hikes have sparked various protests in various regions because their impact put a heavy burden on the people," Ricky Rachmadi, who is also a deputy secretary general of the Golkar Party, said.
He said that the people felt the rate increases as a heavy burden because it coincided with the new academic year and in the runup to the fasting month of Ramadhan.
Besides being forced to use their savings to send their children to schools, parents also are also facing the fasting month, he said.
Therefore, Rachmadi said the government should really be careful in calculating the power rate hikes and in managing rice stocks at the logistics board (Bulog).
"This is important so that the people would not be shocked that may have an impact on an economic turmoil," he added.(*)
http://www.antaranews.com/en/news/1279509891/cides-warns-of-economic-turmoil
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