Indonesian prosecutors have requested an 18-year prison sentence for Gojek co-founder and former education minister Nadiem Makarim, as reported by DealStreetAsia.
The demand came during the Nadiem Makarim corruption trial at the Central Jakarta District Court on Wednesday (May 13).
Prosecutors presented a 1,597-page indictment accusing the tech entrepreneur of causing massive state losses through an alleged Chromebook procurement scheme between 2020 and 2022.
Authorities allege the procurement process was steered towards Chromebooks despite internal concerns over weak internet connectivity in remote schools.
Prosecutors told the court that Nadiem and several associates caused state financial losses of 1.56 trillion rupiah.
They also alleged his assets had increased disproportionately. They pointed to an estimated 4.87 trillion rupiah in unexplained wealth linked to the case, DealStreetAsia reported.
“The defendant, together with Ibrahim Arief, Sri Wahyuningsih, Mulyatsyah, and fugitive Jurist Tan, caused state financial losses amounting to 1.56 trillion rupiah,”
prosecutors told the court.
In addition to the prison term, the prosecution is seeking a 1 billion rupiah fine.
They have also demanded replacement payments totalling approximately 5.6 trillion rupiah.
Prosecutors stated that Nadiem’s assets could be seized and auctioned to cover these payments. If the seized assets fall short, they requested an additional nine-year prison term.
Nadiem is scheduled to present his defence on June 2. The court granted a delay to accommodate his recovery from a medical procedure.
While Nadiem awaits his defence hearing, several co-defendants have already been sentenced.
Ibrahim Arief, a tech consultant previously involved with Bukalapak and GovTech Edu, received a four-year prison sentence and a 500-million-rupiah fine on Tuesday (May 12), according to The Jakarta Post.
The court found Arief guilty of influencing procurement specifications in favour of the devices.
Former elementary school director Sri Wahyuningsih was also sentenced to four years in prison.
Former junior secondary school director Mulyatsyah received a four-and-a-half-year sentence and was ordered to pay 2.28 billion rupiah in restitution, Dandapala reported.
Featured image credit: Edited by Fintech News Indonesia, based on image by wirestock via Magnific
