Drag Google to Gojek, Nadiem Makarim Read the Defense Today

Nadiem Makarim/DOK ANTARA

JAKARTA - The former Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology (Mendikbudristek) for the 2019-2024 period, Nadiem Anwar Makarim, is scheduled to read the defense note or pleidoi on Tuesday today. The legal step in the Central Jakarta Corruption Court was taken after he was sentenced to 18 years in prison for the alleged corruption case of the education digitization project.

Nadiem was dragged into the whirlpool of the alleged corruption case in the procurement of Chromebook laptops and Chrome Device Management (CDM) in the Ministry of Education and Culture's 2019-2022 budget. Based on the Central Jakarta District Court's Case Tracking Information System (SIPP), the trial is scheduled to begin at 10.00 WIB in the Muhammad Hatta Ali Room with Presiding Judge Purwanto Abdullah leading.

"Pleidoi will be read one by one by Nadiem personally and his team of lawyers," wrote the official statement from the SIPP PN Jakpus. For people who want to monitor the trial, the court also broadcasts it live through the YouTube channel @PengadilanNegeriJakartaPusat.

Previously, the public prosecutor filed a fairly fantastic demand for the founder of the technology company. Nadiem was charged with a prison sentence of 18 years and a fine of Rp. 1 billion subsider 190 days in prison. Not only that, he was also required to pay compensation of Rp. 5.67 trillion with a subsider of 9 years in prison.

In the indictment, Nadiem's actions were considered to have caused losses to the state treasury of up to IDR 2.18 trillion. The losses were inflated due to the education digitization program worth IDR 1.56 trillion, as well as the procurement of CDM which was considered unnecessary and useless by 44.05 million US dollars or the equivalent of IDR 621.39 billion. The prosecutor said that the procurement project for learning facilities based on information and communication technology deviated from the planning and procurement principles.

This corruption case is suspected of not being carried out alone. Nadiem is accused of committing this act together with three other defendants in a separate case, namely Ibrahim Arief alias Ibam, Mulyatsyah, and Sri Wahyuningsih, as well as one suspect who is still at large, namely Jurist Tan.

The prosecutor also revealed the alleged flow of funds in which Nadiem was suspected of receiving Rp809.59 billion from PT Aplikasi Karya Anak Bangsa (PT AKAB) through PT Gojek Indonesia. The source of PT AKAB funds is mostly said to come from Google's investment of US $786.99 million. This was then linked to the surge in Nadiem's wealth in the 2022 State-Owned Enterprise Wealth Report (LHKPN) which recorded the ownership of securities worth Rp5.59 trillion.

For his actions, the former Gojek boss was charged with Article 2 paragraph (1) or Article 3 in conjunction with Article 18 of Law Number 31 of 1999 concerning the Eradication of Corruption, as amended by Law Number 20 of 2001 in conjunction with Article 55 paragraph (1) of the Criminal Code. 1.