Purbaya Threatens Customs Freeze, PANRB Minister Responds

PANRB Minister Rini Widyantini said she has not yet communicated with Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa about the proposal to freeze the Directorate General of Customs and Excise (DJBC). The comment was made in Jakarta on Thursday, 11 December 2025. A freeze could impact roughly 16,000 DJBC employees.

Purbaya warned that DJBC must improve its performance within a year, otherwise the top‑level unit may be frozen and staff could be laid off. Rini stressed that a thorough analysis of DJBC’s system and organization is needed before any decision, and noted that staff reassignment (mutasi) is a routine measure.

Should a freeze occur, customs operations and public services could be disrupted, while DJBC has pledged to boost goods monitoring and customer service. DJBC chief Djaka Budhi Utama expressed confidence the agency can improve within a year and called on the public to monitor its performance.