People in Tebo Regency Prefer to Buy Cigarettes Than Rice

Some people in Tebo Regency prefer to buy cigarettes rather than rice.

The government has set a policy of excise tariffs on tobacco products (CHT) 2022 to increase by an average of 12.5 percent.

This is based on the decision of an internal cabinet meeting chaired by the President of the Republic of Indonesia on December 13, 2021.

One of the reasons for this increase is to control cigarette consumption.

Based on data from the March 2021 National Socio-Economic Survey (SUSENAS) by the Central Bureau of Statistics of Tebo Regency, the average per capita expenditure of the people of Tebo Regency for a month is IDR 1,011,685.

Interestingly, the money spent on buying cigarettes and other tobacco products is greater than the money spent on staple foods, in this case rice.

In 2021 the total expenditure per capita of food commodities for the people of Tebo Regency is Rp. 549,658.

Expenditure for cigarettes and tobacco is Rp. 76,605 greater than the expenditure for rice which was only Rp. 75,120.

Expenditures on cigarettes are also higher than those on eggs and milk (Rp. 23,812), vegetables (Rp. 66,071), fruits (Rp. 21,164) and other staple foods. (For more details, please see the publication of the Tebo Regency People's Welfare Statistics 2021 which can be accessed on the tebokab.bps.go.id website page)

This data illustrates that cigarettes are used by some households as a basic need.

Compared to increasing endurance and health that comes from a variety of staple foods, people tend to choose to spend their money on cigarettes.

Based on data from the UI Social Security Study Center (PKJS UI), children from smoking families are proven to be 5.4 times more prone to stunting, compared to children from non-smoking families.

This makes controlling cigarette consumption very important for the government because as the National Medium-Term Development Plan (RPJMN) 2020-2024 the government is trying to improve the quality of human resources (HR).

So, with the increase in the excise rate on tobacco products (CHT), it is hoped that cigarette consumption can be reduced, so that the health aspect can improve. (Jambi data/)