Government Official Suggests the Rich to Marry the Poor to Reduce Poverty

At the National Health Work Meeting in Jakarta, Coordinating Human Development and Culture Minister Muhadjir Effendy suggested that the rich marry the poor in order to reduce poverty.

According to Indonesia’s government data, poor households are at 5 million.

“The number of Indonesian households is 57.1 million, 9.4 percent or 5 million of which are categorized as poor. If added to the near-poor households, it is about 16.8 percent or about 15 million households,” as quoted by Tempo.

Minister Muhadjir Effendy suggested to Religious Affairs Minister Fachrul Razi to issue an order for the poor to look for the rich and vice versa.

 

Minister Muhadjir Effendy also proposed a premarital certification program to help couples be economically stable by getting a pre-employment card that is set to launch this year by President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo.