Jakarta Residents Rally at Social Affairs Ministry Over Decile Data Dispute - Tempo.co English
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A number of residents from the Jakarta Citizens Coalition for Justice visited the Ministry of Social Affairs on Thursday, September 17, 2026, to protest chaos in the welfare decile ranking based on the National Socioeconomic Single Data (DTSEN). The coalition said many residents felt their decile ranking did not correspond to actual conditions on the ground.
They claim that decile discrepancies harm the poor, who should be entitled to social assistance. "We are here just to have our aspirations heard!" said the General Chairperson of the Jakarta Citizens Coalition for Justice, Marlo Sitompul, while speaking in front of the Ministry of Social Affairs office in Jakarta on Thursday, September 17, 2026.
Previously, the coalition opened reporting posts on decile discrepancies in 21 of Jakarta’s districts. As a result, the coalition recorded at least 2,500 impoverished individuals who were at risk of being cut off from social assistance programs due to being categorized as capable decile recipients.
The coalition urged the Ministry of Social Affairs and Statistics Indonesia (BPS) to improve the data system that could harm the poor. Their demands include changes in the decile ranking indicators and an audit of social assistance recipients.
They also advocated for community and local group involvement in updating social assistance recipient data, as well as for expanding the number of recipients of the Family Food Program and non-cash food assistance.
After around 30 minutes of speeches, the protesters then had an audience with the Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf and his deputy, Agus Jabo, at the Ministry of Social Affairs office grounds.
During the audience, a resident of Penjaringan Sub-district, North Jakarta, Murniasih, said she was classified as decile 6 even though she only had an average income of Rp170,000 per day from selling fried snacks. Murniasih stated that her income was insufficient to meet the needs of her six family members.
The 34-year-old woman admitted she had to take out a loan to cover daily expenses, estimated to exceed Rp 300,000. "Yesterday when I checked, I was classified as decile 6 and never received social assistance from the start," she said.
The Head of Neighborhood Association 03/Block 14 of Penjaringan Sub-district, North Jakarta, Mumu Munajar, admitted to not knowing how Murniasih ended up being classified as decile 6. During the economic census survey, Mumu said that the census officers were puzzled by the results as well.
"Many residents are classified as high decile. Even though from the facts on the ground, some are truly unable," she said.
Minister of Social Affairs Saifullah Yusuf acknowledged to the residents who came that there are still inaccurate rankings in the data. "You are allowed to protest, refute, suggest, and we will try to investigate, delve into, and rectify it. Because we realize that our data is not entirely accurate," he said.
He promised to follow up on the public's complaints and gave the Ministry of Social Affairs a seven-day deadline to rectify it. The rectification will be carried out through re-verification and validation in the field.
