REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Resources, Rizal Ramli, said President Joko Widodo asked PT Freeport Indonesia to build a smelter (mine processing plant) and improve composition of distribution of royalties.

"The President has stressed that there should be a smelter and Freeport should repair royalties, but unfortunately there are still officials who were lobbied without evaluating it first," Rizal said, in Palembang, Friday (27/11).

According to him, it could make Indonesia stuck in the same situation. Indonesia could be a nation that easily tricked by foreigners.

"If Indonesia doesn't want to change, then Indonesia will lose golden opportunity to control natural resources for the welfare of people," he explained.

He said, when Indonesia still has vast and green forest, the people did not manage it well. Indonesian people did not think about the sustainability of the plants.

"Moreover, when Indonesia began to try petroleum energy, the people forgot to build and expand the refineries," Rizal added.

In marine resources, Indonesia allowed illegal fishing that made Indonesian fishermen poor. Then, Indonesia missed a golden opportunity to keep mineral resources and gave it to foreign country for decades.

"Those mistakes should be lessons to be learned," he said.

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