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TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Association of Employees of the Witness and Victim Protection Agency (LPSK) stated that 60 honorary employees are threatened with layoffs. This comes as the LPSK's budget has been slashed from Rp229.9 billion to Rp122.2 billion.
The Chairperson of the LPSK Employees Association, Tommy Permana, explained that the remaining budget also affects the services for the protection of witnesses and victims. According to Tommy, out of Rp107 billion, 40 percent has been used for employee expenses.
"The amount of Rp107 billion is not entirely for the protection program, but includes employee expenses, operational costs, and others," said Tommy in a written statement received by Tempo on Monday, February 17, 2025.
Based on the budget cut, Tommy is worried that the 60 honorary employees are facing the threat of layoff. He said that the layoff prospects are now being discussed internally.
Tommy stated that based on the formed budget framework, honorary employees are in the goods and services expenses. In this regard, he continued, the goods and services account is one of the budget nomenclatures that is the target of the reduction.
"So, the layoff of our honorary colleagues is imminent and causing anxiety. Moreover, if this becomes a shortcut within the internal environment to support budget efficiency," said Tommy.
LPSK employees demonstrated in front of their office on Monday, February 10, 2025, to express the layoff of honorary employees. Responding to these concerns, the Chairperson of LPSK, Retired Brigadier General Achmadi, stated that they are still assessing the impact of the budget cut on the institution's performance.
Achmadi did not definitively answer whether there will be layoffs of honorary employees at LPSK, "This is still under study. All the employees' aspirations and concerns will be discussed with other leaders," said Achmadi.
According to him, with a budget reduced by more than half, the protection of witnesses and victims must not be disrupted. He stated that sacrifices must be made due to the policy of budget cuts.
"Efficiency is the President's order and we cannot refuse it, but I emphasize that the protection of witnesses and victims must continue," he said.
During a hearing with Commission XIII last Thursday, LPSK proposed a budget reconstruction of Rp122,220,952,000 to the House of Representatives (DPR). The figure was obtained based on a meeting between LPSK and the Directorate of Social Welfare Budgeting of the Ministry of Finance on February 11.
The reconstructed budget consists of goods expenses amounting to Rp107,265,986,000 and capital expenditure of Rp14,954,966,000. Thus, it is concluded that the effective budget that can be used by LPSK this year is Rp107,698,403,000.
The budget is allocated for several purposes, namely, the law enforcement and legal services program, which consists of admission, review, and investment activities, as well as protection activities and fulfillment of the rights of witnesses and victims with a total of Rp32,785,717,000.
The budget after the cut is also used for management support programs, which consist of legal service management, public relations, protocol, and regulation drafting, as well as budget management, human resources, organization and administration, facilities and infrastructure, administration, and internal supervision activities with a total of Rp74,912,686,000.
Achmadi stated that LPSK also made efforts to circumvent efficiency. For example, by limiting official trips and implementing a work-from-anywhere (WFA) system on certain days.
"In essence, we remain focused on protecting witnesses and victims wholeheartedly," said Achmadi.
Following Presidential Instruction (Inpres) Number 1 of 2025, budget cuts are stipulated in a Letter from the Minister of Finance Number S-37/MK.02/2025 issued on January 24, 2025, concerning the Efficiency of Expenditure of Ministries/Institutions in the Implementation of the State Budget for the 2025 fiscal year. The Inpres was signed by President Prabowo Subianto on January 22, 2025.
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