Search of Special Staff Residence, AGO's Strategy Before Examining Nadiem Makarim?

A day after the investigation warrant related to the alleged corruption of the Education Digitalization Program for the years 2019-2022 was issued on May 21, 2025, the residences of two former special staff members of the Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Nadiem Makarim, named Jurist Tan and Fiona Handayani, were searched. Two days later, it was the turn of another former special staff member, Ibrahim Arief, whose residence was also searched.

From the residence of Fiona Handayani, investigators seized 1 laptop and 4 mobile phones. At the home of Jurist Tan, investigators confiscated 2 external hard drives, 1 removable disk, and 1 laptop. In addition, investigators also seized 15 agenda books.

From the residence of Ibrahim Arief in Cilandak, South Jakarta, investigators seized a mobile phone and a laptop. Ibrahim not only served as a special staff member (stafsus) to the Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology, but also as a technical staff member. At that time, Ibrahim held the position of Chief Technology Officer of GovTech Edu, an institution that manages and integrates government digital services.

The three former special staff members also became witnesses among a total of 28 witnesses who have been examined by the investigators. Then, will the search of the three special staff members of Nadiem Makarim eventually lead to the minister?

"What is the role of this special staff? In this regard, what has he done? Where does his order come from and what is the accountability like? This will be investigated by the investigators to see if there is also a closeness to other parties or individuals, for example, or any figures, and this will certainly be explored by the investigators," said the Head of the Legal Information Center of the Attorney General's Office, Harli Siregar, on Wednesday (4/6/2025).

From the preliminary investigation by the Attorney General's Office, the special staff members possess competencies as expert personnel and technical experts. In this capacity, the investigators will explore the roles of the three individuals concerning the Education Digitalization Program from 2019 to 2022, which involved the procurement of Chromebook laptops with a budget reaching IDR 9.9 trillion.

Investigators will examine the roles of the special staff in the program, who ordered the implementation of the program, and the outcomes of their duties as special staff. In this regard, investigators will also explore the potential connections of the program with other parties.

Harli did not deny the position of special staff Ibrahim, who at that time was also managing GovTech Edu. This will be further investigated by the investigators to examine the relationship of the individual with the parties involved in the procurement of Chromebook laptops.

"Does that serve as a connecting factor, for instance, in relation to others, or does it create a closeness that leads to the individual being assigned as a special staff member," explained Harli.

He emphasized that the alleged corruption case is related to the procurement of Chromebook laptops for the implementation of the Minilal Competency Assessment in primary, secondary, and higher education institutions. From the initial review, laptops with the Chrome operating system require an internet connection. Meanwhile, internet access in Indonesia is still uneven.

Instead of following the recommendations of the Technical Planning Team for the Procurement Study of ICT Equipment, which suggested the use of the Windows operating system, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology opted to continue using Chromebook laptops by replacing the study with a new one that specifies the Chrome operating system.

"However, the use of Chromebook laptops continues. Now, this is what needs to be investigated, under whose orders and what the mechanism is like. Then it will further develop, how the indications of financial losses to the state are," explained Harli.

Regarding the possibility of examining Nadiem Makarim, Harli did not provide a definitive answer. According to him, any party deemed necessary by the investigators to clarify the existing case will be summoned.

For the time being, Harli stated, the investigators will focus on examining the statements of 28 witnesses who have been questioned by the investigators, particularly to identify the party deemed most responsible in the case. In addition, the investigators are currently concentrating on analyzing the evidence that has been seized from the three former special staff of the Minister of Education and Culture, both in the form of documents and electronic evidence.

In a study published by Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) in September 2021, ICW recommended that the Chromebook laptop procurement program be reviewed. This is due to the uneven state of internet connectivity in Indonesia, as well as several irregularities identified by ICW.

The irregularities include the fact that the program was not found in the information system of the Government Goods/Services Procurement Policy Agency or LKPP. Another reason is that the push for the use of domestic products at that time seemed forced, while there were only six domestic providers that met the criteria set by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology in the program.

Separately, a researcher from the Center for Anti-Corruption Studies at Gadjah Mada University (Pukat UGM), Zaenur Rohman, opined that an individual is examined as a witness or searched at their residence due to suspected involvement in a criminal act. However, the individual is not necessarily a perpetrator or a suspect.

During the search, investigators sought to examine and find evidence of the occurrence of a criminal act. When the residence of the former special staff of the Minister of Education and Technology was searched, the investigators suspected a connection between the case under investigation and their work as special staff.

"I see that the investigators are likely searching for information, seeking evidence from devices and documents held by the special staff to uncover how the tender process for the procurement of Chromebooks was conducted. For instance, whether these special staff members provided recommendations for changes or not," said Zaenur.

In this case, the investigators certainly want to understand what influenced the review team so that the recommendation for the procurement of laptops changed from the Windows operating system to Chrome. In this regard, the investigators will examine it within the framework of compliance with the applicable laws and regulations.

Regarding the possibility of examining Nadiem Makarim, Zaenur is confident that this will certainly be carried out by the investigators. This is because the minister is the primary responsible party within the ministry, and the special staff are an extension of the minister's authority.

"Did the minister give orders, did the minister know when to change the study recommendations, when to select the vendor, and when to carry out the procurement as a whole," explained Zaenur.

In addition, investigators should also explore the possibility of parties receiving bribes or gratuities from vendors. Similarly, investigators are expected to examine potential conflicts of interest among the public officials involved with the companies that won the tenders.

Zaenur is confident that the suspects in the case will eventually be charged under Article 2 or Article 3 of the Law on the Eradication of Corruption Crimes. These articles regulate the abuse of authority that results in financial losses to the state.