JAKARTA: Authorities have intensified their crackdown on graft within Indonesia's free nutritious meal initiative, arresting two more individuals this week. The Attorney General's Office (AGO) is now holding five suspects connected to the scandal, which has already claimed three former National Nutrition Agency (BGN) leaders who oversaw the initiative.
Investigators detained Andri Mulyono, a commissioner at logistics provider PT Yasa Artha Trimanunggal (YAT), on Friday (June 12) after interrogating him earlier that day. Prosecutors allege he inflated prices for more than 21,000 electric motorcycles destined for meal preparation facilities across the nation, engineering the costs to hit the BGN's Rp 1.03 trillion (US$58.2 million) spending ceiling. According to Syarief Sulaeman Nahdi, investigation director at the Office of Assistant Attorney General for Special Crimes, Andri misappropriated funds through the scheme.
The motorcycle procurement itself provoked considerable public outcry in April, with many questioning its relevance to the programme's core mission. Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa subsequently announced that no additional electric motorcycle acquisitions would take place in 2026, attributing the mishap to miscommunication inside the ministry that resulted in partial approval of the proposal.
Earlier in the week, authorities apprehended businessman Asep Yusuf Somantri as another suspect. Investigators maintain he exploited connections with former BGN deputy Sony Sonjaya—arrested earlier this month—to interfere with the partner verification procedure, enabling him to alter kitchen registrations and advance applications beyond the official deadline. Sony and fellow former deputy Lodewyk Pusung, along with ex-BGN chief Dadan Hindayana, were taken into custody on June 3, one day after President Prabowo Subianto terminated their employment.
Prosecutors are considering Sony's request to become a justice collaborator, potentially revealing over 20 additional individuals allegedly implicated in the misconduct. The programme, intended to feed more than 80 million schoolchildren and expectant mothers nationwide to combat malnutrition, has faced mounting public criticism following at least 33,000 documented food-poisoning incidents since its rollout in early 2025. This discontent culminated in a Friday demonstration titled #MenujuIndonesiaBangkrut (Indonesia heading for bankruptcy), where students protested what they termed the government's misplaced priorities amid the nation's currency weakness.
Government Communications Agency head Muhammad Qodari defended the initiative on Saturday, insisting the scheme would persist despite the controversy. He characterised implementation difficulties as inevitable in any major undertaking, emphasising that administrative challenges should not warrant programme suspension. Officials maintain the free meals scheme remains essential for addressing stunting across the nation.
