5 Commissioners And Secretary General Of KPU Proven To Violate Ethics Related To The Use Of Private Jets

The Election Organizers Honorary Council (DKPP) imposed harsh warnings on five commissioners of the General Elections Commission (KPU) and the Secretary General of the KPU for using a luxury classified private jet in carrying out their duties in the 2024 General Election.

The five commissioners who were sanctioned were KPU chairman Mochammad Afifuddin and Idham Kholik member Yulianto Sudrajat, Parsadaan Harahap, and August Mellaz. In addition, sanctions were also given to KPU Secretary General Bernad Darmawan Sutrisno.

"Imposing a strong warning sanction on the defendant as of the time this decision was read out," said DKPP Chairman Heddy Lugito when reading the verdict in Jakarta, Tuesday, October 21, 2025.

DKPP explained that the use of the Embraer Legacy 650 private jet by KPU officials was proven to have violated the code of ethics and code of conduct for election organizers. Meanwhile, another commissioner, Betty Idroos, was not sanctioned for refusing to use a private jet in carrying out his duties.

DKPP member I Dewa Kade Wiarsa Raka Sandi revealed that the procurement of the private jet was financed using a state budget worth Rp90 billion with a lease contract for one month, from January to February 2024. The budget is included in the vehicle procurement post to support the distribution of election logistics.

However, in practice, the use of private jets is not in accordance with the initial purpose. The jet is not only used to go to Bali, but also to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on the grounds that it examines the calculation of votes in overseas electoral areas," said Raka Sandi in an online trial.

In addition to overseas travel, the commissioners and the Secretary General of the KPU also used private jets for fit and proper test activities for candidates for election organizers in a number of areas such as Riau, East Java, and East Kalimantan.

DKPP member Ratna Dewi Pettalolo said the action was unprofessional. "The defendants were proven to have violated the code of ethics and code of conduct of the election organizers," he said. He added that the private jet should have been used to monitor logistics distribution in disadvantaged, frontier, and outermost areas, but from the 59 flights carried out, none of them headed for the region.

Until now, KPU Chairman Mochammad Afifuddin has not responded to the sanctions imposed by the DKPP. Commissioner Idham Kholik was also reluctant to comment and requested that questions be directed to the logistics division. Meanwhile, Commissioner of the Logistics Division Yulianto Sudrajat has not responded to requests for clarification from the media.

In a previous statement in May 2025, Afifuddin claimed the use of private jets was carried out solely because of the high demand for mobilization during the preparation period for the 2024 General Election. He said that within one day the KPU could make visits to three different provinces so that commercial aircraft would not be possible due to limited schedules and delay risks.

'Hire the time and efficiency of national coordination. This is purely a technical necessity, not a lifestyle,' said Afifuddin at the time.

He also assessed that the 2024 election campaign period, which only took 75 days, made the KPU had to work faster in preparing and distributing logistics to all regions. Therefore, he emphasized that the use of private jets is a strategic operational step in extraordinary conditions. Not a waste or a violation of the law. In a situation like this, high mobility is a must," said Afifuddin.