Close Gaps for Misappropriation

There are some improvements that must be done in order to close gaps for misappropriation, including in the submission of area codes and distribution of village fund.

KOMPAS/KELVIN HIANUSA

A resident sits in the doorway of his stilt house in Lerehoma village of Konawe regency, Southeast Sulawesi. Lerehoma is one of 56 beneficiaries of the village funds that were established under a fictitious law.

KONAWE, KOMPAS – The Indonesian government’s village fund, which reached Rp 70 trillion (US$5.01 billion), should be able to boost people’s welfare in the more than 74,000 villages across the country. However, there are some improvements that must be done in order to close gaps for misappropriation, including in the submission of area codes and fund distribution.

In the case in Konawe regency, Southeast Sulawesi, the first gap for village fund misappropriation is in the lacking verification process at the provincial government and the Home Ministry as it relates to the regency administration’s submission of area codes. This has led to the emergence of bogus regional regulations on establishing new villages.