The Government Involves the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) to Ensure Accurate Distribution of Social Assistance
By: Sabrina Natasya )*
The government’s efforts to ensure the distribution of social assistance (Bansos) is now increasingly serious, especially following the shocking findings from the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK), which revealed that more than 600,000 Bansos recipients were suspected of playing online gambling. Firm action was taken. The Ministry of Social Affairs (Kemensos) immediately partnered with Bank Indonesia (BI) and strengthened cooperation with PPATK to investigate the irregular flow of funds from the accounts of Bansos recipients.
Social Affairs Minister Saifullah Yusuf (Gus Ipul) stated that the collaboration with Bank Indonesia aims to analyze recipients’ account transactions to detect any indication of misuse of social assistance funds. The Ministry of Social Affairs will collaborate with Bank Indonesia to review, explore, and analyze recipients’ accounts and verify their balances.
So far, more than 200 social assistance recipients suspected of using funds for online gambling (judol) have been removed from the list. They will be replaced by more deserving individuals in the next social assistance distribution period. Gus Ipul emphasized that the verification process is ongoing, with hundreds of other cases under in-depth investigation.
Social assistance recipients who play judol will be investigated. However, the agency also warned that there is a possibility that some of the recipients’ personal data may have been misused by others. This is still being investigated. For example, if someone else uses or exploits their personal data, it could be that their personal data is being used by someone else.
The Ministry of Social Affairs is also intensifying the use of the National Socioeconomic Single Data (DTSEN) from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) to update and verify the eligibility of social assistance recipients. This single data set serves as the foundation for efforts to divert social assistance from ineligible recipients to those truly in need.
The Minister of Social Affairs revealed that, by the second quarter of this year, there had been an increase of approximately 1.4 million beneficiaries from deciles 1-4. In the first quarter, more than 15 million families from deciles 1-4 received social assistance. Meanwhile, in the second quarter, this number increased to 16 million beneficiary families. Furthermore, 1.9 million beneficiaries of the Family Hope Program (PKH) and basic food assistance have also been transferred from the upper to the lower deciles, including 8.2 million inactive or ineligible PBI beneficiaries.
The Jakarta Provincial Government has taken similar steps. Jakarta Governor Pramono Anung firmly stated that social assistance will be revoked from recipients found to be involved in illegal activities, including online gambling. Social assistance is intended for those in genuine need. If involvement in online gambling is found, assistance will be diverted to other residents in greater need.
Governor Pramono added that the Jakarta Provincial Government is strengthening cross-agency coordination, including with the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK), the Communications and Information Technology Office (Diskominfotik), the Social Services Agency, and the Jakarta Inspectorate. This collaboration was marked by the signing of a memorandum of understanding with the PPATK and the LPSK (Leverage and Protection Agency) as part of a strategy to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing. PPATK data indicates that 602,419 Jakarta residents were involved in online gambling throughout 2024, and 15,033 of them were social assistance recipients.
Equally important, public participation is essential. According to Governor Pramono, the public needs to monitor and report any indications of misuse of social assistance funds in their communities. A shared commitment between the central and regional governments, as well as the community, will be key to ensuring that social assistance is properly targeted and not misused for illegal practices such as online gambling.
Enforcement efforts are also underway in the Special Region of Yogyakarta (DIY). The Yogyakarta Social Service has reaffirmed its commitment to removing the names of social assistance recipients who misuse funds for gambling. The Head of the Yogyakarta Social Service, Endang Patmintarsih, stated that her office is ready to take firm action. The Yogyakarta Social Service has also coordinated with district/city governments in its jurisdiction to update beneficiary family (KPM) data and increase oversight of aid distribution. Although there is no definitive data yet on social assistance recipients involved in online gambling in Yogyakarta, the office is awaiting valid data from the Ministry of Social Affairs and the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) to verify and clean up the recipient list.
The Ministry of Social Affairs also stated that coordination with the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) is not only about online gambling, but also to ensure that social assistance recipients are not involved in terrorism or drug financing. This is not the Ministry’s intention, but rather a means of combing through, selecting, and sorting those who are truly deserving of social assistance.
These steps reflect the government’s commitment to maintaining the integrity of the social assistance program, which impacts millions of Indonesians. Through strong inter-agency collaboration and the use of information technology and a unified data system, efforts to eliminate ineligible recipients are expected to strengthen the foundation of social protection in Indonesia.
With this strategic step, the government not only maintains accountability in managing social assistance but also sends a strong message that the state is present to protect the rights of the poor and vulnerable in a fair, clean, and responsible manner.
)* Economic and MSME Observer
