Remarks of President of the Republic of Indonesia at the Handover of Land Certificate in Dairi Regency, North Sumatra Province, February 3, 2022

Assalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,
Good afternoon,
May peace be upon us all,
Shalom,

All of us here, let’s focus on the handover of land certificate.

Distinguished Ministers of the Indonesia Onward Cabinet. Joining us here Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan who is a Bataknese;

Distinguished Minister of Tourism and Creative Economy Sandiaga Uno, Minister of Public Works and Public Housing Basuki Hadimuljono, Minister of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning Sofyan Djalil;

Distinguished Governor of North Sumatra and all ranks of Forkopimda (Regional Leadership Coordination Forum);

Distinguished Regent of Dairi. Upon arrival I was welcomed by the crowd. (From helipad) to here by car was also crowded. I realized that previously Dairi regency was never been visited by a president. Today is the first time so it was crowded.

Distinguished recipients of land certificates.

Ladies and Gentlemen.

Earlier the Minister said that today as many as 600 land certificates were distributed; 400 certificates of the complete systematic land registration (PTSL) program and 150 certificates of land redistribution program. The certificates have been distributed to you all. It is important. Indeed, the land certificates are important. All recipients please raise your hands to make sure whether you have obtained the certificates or not. Okay, all recipients have received the certificates.

If there is land dispute and you all have the certificates, it will be okay. Suddenly, someone comes (wants to claim yours) and says, “This is mine, my land,” You can say, “No, here is my certificate.” The width of the land and name of the owner are stated in the certificate.

But if you have a house and lived there for 20 years or you have your own plantations for 15 years but you do not have a certificate yet. Suddenly, someone comes to claim yours, “It is mine,” “No, it is mine,” you replied. How do you want to prove it? That’s why a land certificate is important, it provides legal certainty over land ownership. And now, all of you have received it, haven’t you?

Therefore, we have to continue to accelerate the process of the issuance of land certificate in all over Indonesia. Previously, every year only 500 thousand certificates were distributed while 80 million (areas) were not certified yet, only 46 million (areas) were certified. It was in 2017. It means that you have to wait 160 years to have a certificate. If every year the Government distributes only 500 thousand certificates and there are 80 million uncertified areas, it means that you have to wait 160 years to have it. Do you want it? Nobody wants it.

This is the importance of the certificates. So, this year, how much certificate do we distribute? Eight million? Okay, eight million certificates. From 500 thousand certificates per year, now we have issued eight million certificates. The target will be set higher, for the example nine million (certificates), and higher. Due to COVID-19 pandemic, the certificates distributed only reached eight million. However, eight million certificates are significantly higher than 500,000 certificates, aren’t they?

Why it becomes my concern? Every time I visit a village, regency, I have heard reports on land dispute between citizens, citizens and the Government, citizens and state-owned enterprises, even citizens and private companies. The problem is certificate. In North Sumatra province there are a lot of land dispute cases. Around Medan city, you can ask the Governor (of North Sumatra), a lot of land dispute cases. They are unsolved yet because the land owners do not have certificates, but they have lived there for 15 or 20 years. Once again, a land certificate is important as a legal basis of land ownership.

With the rapid process of the issuance of land certificate, it is expected to decrease the number of land dispute cases. However, we have to admit that there are still land dispute cases due to the slow process of the issuance of land certificate. It was only 500 certificates per year. When will we finish, if only 500 certificates we distribute? I express my appreciation to Heads of Regional Office, Heads of Land Agency Office for the hard work.

Thus, I would like to tell you that a certificate is a valuable thing. Please keep the certificate properly and make copies of it. Keep the certificate in a proper place. If the copy is gone, it is okay because the original one is kept properly. You can also report to the Office of Land Agency. It there is flood or other disasters or if it is burned, it will be not a problem because you have a copy of the certificate.

And with the certificate, if you have a business or you want to start a new business, it can be used as a collateral for the bank. But you have to be prudent. It will be easy to get a loan. You get the certificate, loan money from the bank, and the bank will lend you Rp600 million; Rp300 million is used to buy car on installment and other Rp300 million to be allocated for your business. After six months, you cannot afford the installment. Please be cautious.

So, related to the loan from the bank, all must be well calculated. If you get Rp600 million, you can allocate it for your business capital, working capital, or investment. Do not spend it for luxury goods. You cannot afford the installment. Please, allocate it for productive activities.

That concludes my speech on this auspicious occasion. Once again, I am very happy to visit Dairi regency. The Regent (of Dairi) has asked me many times, “Mr. President, please come to Dairi. You have visited Humbang [Hasundutan] regency four times. You have not visited Dairi regency, Mr. President.”

“But you have not invited me and then he said, “Yes, Sir, I would like to invite you, Mr. President,” then I replied, “Yes, I will visit Dairi regency when I inspect Toba Lake.”

That concludes my speech on this auspicious occasion. Once again, I thank you.

Wassalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.
May peace be upon us all.

(AP/MMB)