A member of the House of Representatives (DPR) Commission XI, Harris Turino, has voiced strong criticism regarding the Ministry of Finance’s (MoF) March 2026 State Budget (APBN) report, asserting that it presents an excessively optimistic outlook. According to Harris, this monthly APBN report fails to adequately reflect the underlying fundamental cracks within the nation’s finances.
“I commend the spirit and performance of the Ministry of Finance. However, this document is too eager to sell optimism, thereby neglecting to highlight the fundamental cracks that are actually widening,” Harris stated in a written declaration on Wednesday, May 6, 2026.
Harris, who chairs the PDI Perjuangan Faction Group in Commission XI, likened the government’s approach to merely decorating the facade of a building while choosing to conceal a foundation whose materials are eroding due to high-interest debt. This analogy underscores his concern over a superficial presentation masking deeper structural issues.
One of Harris’s primary concerns focuses on the Ministry of Finance’s claim of robust state revenue growth. The MoF reported state revenue realization reaching Rp 574.9 trillion, significantly bolstered by a strong 20.7 percent increase in tax revenue. As a DPR commission tasked with fiscal oversight, Harris urges a more realistic assessment of these figures.
He contends that this “fantastic growth” is largely attributable to seasonal factors, specifically the Eid al-Fitr holiday allowance (THR) distributed to 10.7 million civil servants, military/police personnel, and pensioners. This directly contributed to Article 21 income tax receipts. Harris emphasized, “This is not structural growth; it’s merely a temporary ‘doping’ effect that will dissipate once Ramadan concludes.”
The surge in tax payments was further boosted by the practice of delaying tax restitutions. Commission XI has continuously received complaints from businesses regarding this issue. While Harris agrees on the necessity of tightening tax restitutions to prevent leakage, he firmly believes that such restitutions are the rightful entitlement of taxpayers for overpayments made to the government. He views the act of withholding restitutions to artificially inflate net revenue on paper as an unhealthy fiscal mechanism.
The escalating deficit also drew sharp criticism. Harris described the narrative of “controlled expansive spending” as a paradox, noting that the APBN deficit in March surged by 140.5 percent. While substantial state spending is directed towards priority programs, Harris stressed the critical need for rigorous oversight of their implementation to prevent waste or potential irregularities.
Furthermore, relying on debt as a source of spending financing presents inherent risks for future generations. The reported Q1 2026 economic growth of 5.6 percent, while seemingly positive, is largely perceived as being driven by government spending sourced not from strong indigenous revenue but rather from the acquisition of new debt.
The government certainly has reason to acknowledge the capital inflows into the bond market in April. However, Harris pointed out a concerning counter-trend: a decline in investor bid ratios and an increase in the yield of government securities (SBN). This indicates that investors are demanding higher prices for lending debt, perceiving an elevated risk, which inevitably leads to a heavier burden of interest payments.
Harris argued that imprudent fiscal architecture has contributed to the weakening of the rupiah exchange rate. While global conditions are undeniably volatile, he asserted, “Our internal fundamentals are also fragile. Growth financed by increasingly expensive debt is a recipe for currency weakening.”
The burden of swelling energy subsidies due to the Middle East conflict is already significant. Now, with expensive debt and a weaker rupiah, the cost of import substitutions – from fuel to food staples – is skyrocketing. Ordinary citizens are being hit from two directions: rising prices driven by the exchange rate, while the government is compelled to restrain subsidies due to the widening debt deficit.
Consequently, Harris strongly criticized the prevailing fiscal communication culture that merely highlights growth without daring to expose the associated cost and risk. “We demand transparency. Do not just beautify the numbers on the front page while concealing the due debt bills on the back page,” he urged.
Earlier, Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa had presented a more positive outlook, stating that the 2026 APBN experienced expansive growth. “As of March, the APBN grew quite expansively. If you look at 2026, state revenue grew 10 percent,” he remarked on Tuesday, May 5, 2026.
The reported state revenue realization stood at Rp 574.9 trillion, while state expenditure reached Rp 815 trillion. This resulted in an APBN deficit of Rp 240.1 trillion by the end of March 2026.
Summary
Harris Turino, a member of the House of Representatives Commission XI, has criticized the Ministry of Finance’s March 2026 APBN report for being overly optimistic and masking fundamental fiscal weaknesses. He argues that the reported 20.7 percent growth in tax revenue is merely a temporary effect of seasonal factors like Eid holiday bonuses and delayed tax restitutions rather than true structural growth. Furthermore, he highlights that the 140.5 percent surge in the budget deficit and the reliance on increasingly expensive debt to finance spending pose significant risks to the nation’s economic stability.
The criticism extends to the government’s fiscal communication, which Turino claims prioritizes superficial achievements while concealing mounting debt burdens and structural vulnerabilities. He points out that rising yields on government securities and the weakening rupiah reflect investor concerns regarding Indonesia’s internal fiscal health. Ultimately, Turino demands greater transparency from the Ministry of Finance, urging officials to move beyond optimistic narratives and address the rising costs and risks facing citizens and the broader economy.