Nadiem Saddened by Being Labeled 'White-Collar Criminal' in His Trial

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Former Indonesian Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Minister (2019–2024) Nadiem Anwar Makarim expressed sadness over what he described as a new narrative labeling him a “white-collar criminal” in his ongoing corruption trial.

“I am accused of being too smart for a corruption case that is visible on the surface,” Nadiem said during his defense statement at the Jakarta Corruption Court on Tuesday.

He argued that if he had indeed committed corruption, it would have required an extraordinary level of concealment, to the extent that neither he nor the prosecutors would be able to fully understand the alleged scheme.

Nadiem further claimed that since prosecutors had failed to substantiate their arguments with evidence, they had resorted to building a narrative based on suspicion.

After five months of hearings, he said no evidence had been presented showing that he personally benefited, either in cash or shares, from the Chromebook procurement program.

“There is no PPATK report showing that I received even a single rupiah or any shares from the ministry, laptop vendors, CDM resellers, Google, PT Gojek Indonesia, or GoTo. None,” he said.

He also questioned the prosecution’s logic, asking why, if he had planned large-scale corruption from the beginning of his tenure as alleged, he invited the Attorney General’s Office to oversee the Chromebook procurement process from start to finish.

Nadiem said he did not participate in procurement transactions conducted by the Commitment Making Officer (PPK) through the government’s e-catalog system (LKPP), yet prosecutors were present during those processes.

He also asked why he requested the Financial and Development Supervisory Agency (BPKP) to audit the Chromebook procurement twice during his tenure if he had intended to manipulate the process.

“If there was an intention to manipulate procurement, why would the ministry use the LKPP e-catalog system, where we had no control over vendor selection or listed prices?” he said.

“What kind of corrupt person invites three external institutions to examine the results of their corruption?” he added.

Nadiem is one of the defendants in a corruption case involving the Ministry of Education’s digitalization program, which included the procurement of Chromebook laptops and Chrome Device Management (CDM) systems between 2019 and 2022.

He previously faced an 18-year prison demand, a Rp1 billion fine (substitutable with 190 days’ imprisonment), and restitution of Rp5.67 trillion (substitutable with nine years’ imprisonment).

Prosecutors allege that the procurement caused state losses of Rp2.18 trillion, including Rp1.56 trillion from the digital education program and Rp621.39 billion (US$44.05 million) from unnecessary CDM procurement.

Nadiem is accused of committing the offense alongside several co-defendants, including Ibrahim Arief, Mulyatsyah, Sri Wahyuningsih, and Jurist Tan, who remains at large.

The prosecution also alleged that Nadiem received Rp809.59 billion linked to PT Aplikasi Karya Anak Bangsa (AKAB) through PT Gojek Indonesia, with a significant portion of AKAB’s funding traced to a US$786.99 million investment from Google.

His wealth disclosure report (LHKPN) for 2022 recorded securities assets worth Rp5.59 trillion.

He has been charged under Indonesia’s Anti-Corruption Law, which carries penalties under Articles 2(1) or 3 in conjunction with Article 18 of Law No. 31/1999 as amended by Law No. 20/2001, and Article 55(1) of the Criminal Code.

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