Ministry of Social Affairs Revokes ACT's Fundraising License, Details of its Past Programs Revealed

The Ministry of Social Affairs (Kemensos) has officially revoked the fundraising license of the philanthropic foundation Aksi Cepat Tanggap (ACT). The license revocation was taken due to the deduction of donation funds exceeding the stipulated regulations.

Article 6 paragraph (1) of Government Regulation Number 29 of 1980 concerning the Implementation of Fundraising states that the cost of fundraising operations may not exceed 10% of the total funds collected.

Meanwhile, based on clarifications, ACT President Ibnu Khajar stated that an average of 13.7% of the funds collected from the public was used for the foundation's operational costs.

"The figure of 13.7% does not comply with the maximum limit of 10%. Meanwhile, all disaster relief funds were disbursed to the public without any operational costs deducted from the collected funds," said the Acting Minister of Social Affairs, Muhadjir Effendy, as quoted by *Kompas.com* on Wednesday (6/7/2022).

In its annual report, ACT stated that it had collected Rp519.35 billion in donations in 2020. These donations were distributed through several ACT programs. At least 10 ACT programs were recorded in 2020. The most significant portion of ACT's donations (26%) was used for global humanitarian programs.

Next, 18% was allocated to ACT's food program, followed by the waqf program (13%) and the sacrificial animal program (12%).

Furthermore, ACT's budget was used for zakat programs (10%), other programs (8%), disaster relief (6%), and healthcare (6%).

Finally, ACT's budget was used for education programs (0.8%) and economic empowerment (0.7%).

ACT has recently come under scrutiny due to allegations of social fund embezzlement. This stemmed from a report by *Tempo Magazine* on July 2nd, 2022, titled "Leaky Pockets of Public Funds."

The report revealed allegations of the use of institutional funds for personal purposes. ACT leaders were reportedly receiving salaries of up to Rp 250 million, along with luxurious facilities.