Corruption Decision for Former Head of Indofarma is Considered Wrong, This is the Advice from the Dean of FH UII

Yogyakarta - Professor of the Faculty of Law at the University of Indonesia (UII) Yogyakarta, Prof. Dr. Mudzakkir, S.H., M.H., emphatically highlighted the absence of mens rea elements in the corruption case that ensnared the former President Director of PT Indofarma Tbk, Arief Pramuhanto. He also questioned the obligation of compensation in the amount of Rp. 377 billion for state losses in the procurement of health equipment at PT Indofarma and its subsidiary, PT Indofarma Global Medika (IGM).

"As far as I understand, in the case of Arief Pramuhanto there is no element of mens rea. First, he was only carrying out his official duties. Second, the incident occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic emergency so that it was necessary to act quickly to save human lives. Third, the District Court's panel of judges has stated that it has not been proven that there was a flow of funds to Arief to enrich himself so as not to impose a substitute fine. This means that these three things are strong enough to assess that there is no element of crime committed by Arief Pramuhanto," said Mudzakkir in a statement to the media in Jakarta, Tuesday (3/3/2026).

This mens rea element, according to Mudzakkir, is crucial in distinguishing corruption from ordinary administrative errors (wanprestasi). In corruption cases, he emphasized that an actor must have a malicious intent to harm the state.

"The current situation is indeed very worrying, especially for professionals who carry out their duties as leaders of SOEs and their subsidiaries," he said.

Referring to the cassation ruling, Arief Pramuhanto was sentenced to 13 years in prison, a state compensation of Rp222.7 billion, a 7-year prison sentence, and a fine of Rp500 million.

"This is where the big question is. Why did the panel of judges at the Appeal and Cassation levels still convict, even requiring the person concerned to pay compensation when the judge himself stated that there was no flow of funds received by Arief. The logic of the law is simple: Compensation is equivalent to the amount of property obtained from corruption, in accordance with Article 18 paragraph (1) letter b of the Corruption Law. If the judge admits that there is no flow of funds to the defendant, the obligation to pay hundreds of billions is a dangerous legal anomaly for legal certainty in Indonesia," said the 68-year-old academic.

In this case, the panel of judges said that the state's losses amounted to Rp377 billion, consisting of losses at PT Indofarma of Rp18 billion and Rp359 billion at PT IGM. At PT IGM, Arief served as President Commissioner.

Furthermore, Mudzakkir emphasized that legally, the state's losses must be actual losses - meaning that the losses must be real, certain, and have occurred. However, in the case of state-owned enterprise leaders, business failures and uncollectible receivables are often immediately labeled as state losses.

"The Constitutional Court has confirmed that state losses should no longer be based on potential losses. Equating 'inevitable business risks' with 'stealing state money' is a very dangerous legal logic leap," said Mudzakkir.

In his capacity as commissioner, Mudzakkir assessed that the losses at IGM could not be used as a basis for punishing Arief. Based on Law No. 40 of 2007 concerning Limited Liability Companies, commissioners are supervisory organs, not operational executors. Article 108 paragraph (1) of the PT Law states that the board of commissioners is tasked with conducting general supervision and providing advice to the board of directors. This means that commissioners do not sign contracts, appoint vendors, or manage operational accounts.

Arief's case resurfaced after a similar thing happened to the former President Director of PT Pertamina Patra Niaga, Riva Siahaan. In the Central PN's ruling, Thursday (26/2/2026), Riva was sentenced to 9 years in prison in connection with the crude oil governance case that caused the state a loss of Rp9.4 trillion. Previously, the former President Director of PT ASDP Indonesia Ferry (Persero), Ira Puspadewi, was also entangled in a similar case before finally receiving rehabilitation from the President of the Republic of Indonesia, Prabowo Subianto.

"This kind of legal chaos should not be repeated again," concluded Mudzakkir.