TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Former Indonesian Minister of Education, Nadiem Anwar Makarim, has been formally charged with allegedly causing state losses of Rp2.1 trillion in a corruption case linked to the procurement of Chromebook laptops.
The indictment was read on Monday, January 5, 2026, at the Jakarta Corruption Court.
“Causing state financial losses amounting to Rp1,567,888,662,716.74,” stated Chief Prosecutor Roy Riady while reading the indictment.
This figure is based on the “Audit Report on the Calculation of State Financial Losses in the Allegation of Corruption in the Education Digitalization Program at the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology for the 2019-2022 Period,” issued by the Supreme Audit Agency on November 4, 2025.
In addition, Nadiem is accused of causing losses related to the procurement of unnecessary Chrome Device Management (CDM) licenses, amounting to US$44,054,426, equivalent to Rp621.38 billion using the lowest exchange rate from August 2020 to December 2022 (Rp14,105 per US dollar).
Altogether, the total alleged losses reach Rp2.1 trillion.
Prosecutors stated that Nadiem, along with Ibrahim Arief (aka Ibam, Ministry of Education consultant), Mulyatsyah and Sri Wahyuningsih (Directors of Junior High Schools at the Ministry for 2020–2021), and Jurist Tan (Special Staff of the Minister), carried out the procurement of technology-based learning tools, including Chromebook laptops and CDM, across the 2020, 2021, and 2022 budget years.
According to prosecutors, the procurement did not follow proper planning or procurement principles.
“The defendant Nadiem Anwar Makarim, through Ibrahim Arief, Mulyatsyah, Sri Wahyuningsih, and Jurist Tan, reviewed the education digitalization program, which led to the procurement of Chromebooks and CDM, without proper identification of the needs in Indonesia’s basic and secondary education system. This resulted in failures, especially in 3T regions (frontier, underdeveloped, and outermost areas),” the prosecution said.
Prosecutors further alleged that Nadiem and his colleagues set unit prices and budget allocations in 2020 without conducting reliable surveys or compiling supporting data. These 2020 allocations then became the basis for budgets in 2021 and 2022.
The Chromebooks were procured through the Ministry’s e-Catalog and the School Procurement Information System (SIPLah) without proper price evaluation or references, the prosecution argued.
Nadiem faces charges under Article 2 paragraph (1) or Article 3 juncto Article 18 of the Law on the Eradication of Corruption, juncto Article 55 paragraph (1) point 1 of the Criminal Code.
Defense Response
Nadiem’s legal team, led by Dodi S. Abdulkadir, denied the allegations, calling the indictment inaccurate and claiming the initiatives in question were not initiated by the former minister.
“Regarding the alleged state losses of Rp1.5 trillion, that is impossible,” Dodi told Tempo in Central Jakarta on December 15, 2025. He argued that the use of Chrome OS and CDM was more cost-effective than other operating systems.
According to the defense, adopting the Windows operating system would have required an additional Rp5.1 trillion solely for licenses, not counting laptops, which also need higher specifications.
Tabrani Abby, another legal advisor, emphasized that procurement is not the minister’s responsibility.
“In SIPLah, procurement is managed by the Directors with vendors. There is no ministerial authority in selecting vendors,” he said.
He added that Chromebooks were intended for schools with access to electricity and internet, in line with program guidelines, and not for all 3T areas (frontier, underdeveloped, and outermost regions). Any misallocation due to data errors led to laptops being returned.
“But there are some 3T areas that received laptops due to data errors. Those devices are being returned,” Tabrani added.
The case highlights ongoing scrutiny over Indonesia’s education digitalization initiatives and raises questions about accountability and oversight in large-scale government technology procurement.
Read: Nadiem Makarim's Corruption Trial Begins in Jakarta Today
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