12-10-2023 (JAKARTA) Syahrul Yasin Limpo, a former government minister in Indonesia, has been implicated in a corruption investigation and is alleged to have pocketed more than US$800,000 in public funds. This revelation comes just a week after Limpo resigned from his position as the head of the agriculture ministry.
Limpo is now the sixth minister to be investigated for corruption since President Joko Widodo assumed office in 2014. Corruption remains a pervasive issue in the sprawling archipelago, with politicians often being regarded as some of the most corrupt individuals in the country.
According to Johanis Tanak, deputy chief of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), Limpo regularly extorted “illegal levies from civil servants at the agricultural ministry to pay for his and his immediate family’s personal expenses.” Tanak made these allegations during a press conference held late on Wednesday.
The politician stands accused of coercing ministry officials into diverting monthly funds from the state coffers, amounting to a total of 13.9 billion rupiah (US$885,000). The embezzled money was allegedly used to settle credit card bills and make luxury car instalments. Additionally, two high-ranking officials have also been implicated in the case, with Kasdi Subagyono, the ministry’s secretary general, being detained.
Subagyono has been accused of manipulating the job promotion process within the ministry. Limpo, a member of the National Democratic Party, tendered his resignation last week following the KPK’s announcement of a corruption investigation involving him and his ministry. If found guilty, he could potentially face life imprisonment.
Local media reports indicate that Limpo was in his hometown of Makassar, located in South Sulawesi province, when he was named as a suspect. He returned to Jakarta on Thursday morning. Ali Fikri, a spokesman for the KPK, stated that Limpo has not yet been questioned as a suspect, and the decision to arrest him lies with the investigators.
