REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The Head of the National Coordination Unit (Satkornas) for Banser GP Ansor for the 2024–2029 period, Muhammad Syafiq Syauqi, commonly known as Gus Syafiq, considers the issue recently stirred up by some parties regarding a "rice crisis" to be a misleading narrative full of vested interests.
According to him, such patterns often occur whenever national production shows an upward trend and surplus.
"If we look closely, the narrative is built as if Indonesia is experiencing a shortage of rice. In fact, official data proves the opposite. The story they are promoting misleads the public and is full of self-serving nuances, as if they want to create unrest so that the public does not trust the government's achievements," said Gus Syafiq, on Monday (9/8/2025).
He emphasized that such narratives are often exploited by food mafia cronies and their sympathizers to push for rice imports that are actually unnecessary.
"We have seen this pattern repeat itself many times. In the end, there is always pressure to..."