The minister failed to honor a summons for questioning on Thursday, claiming he was required to attend a National Press Day event in Medan, North Sumatra, where President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo was to deliver a speech. The questioning was rescheduled for Feb. 14, according to an AGO spokesman.

 

The summons has sparked speculation over the minister’s fate in the Cabinet, after the NasDem Party, of which Johnny is a member, endorsed former Jakarta governor and opposition figure Anies Baswedam for the presidency in 2024.

The move has complicated the party’s relationship with President Jokowi and the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), which has called on the President to remove NasDem ministers from his Cabinet.

When asked about the AGO’s planned questioning of Johnny, President Jokowi called for the legal process to be respected.

BTS graft case

 

AGO spokesperson Ketut Sumedana told journalists on Thursday that the team investigating the BTS graft case was still gathering evidence. The alleged corruption is believed to have cost the state Rp 1 trillion (US$64 million).

Five our people have been charged so far. They are Telecommunications and Information Accessibility Agency (BAKTI) president director Anang Achmad Latif, PT Mora Telematika Indonesia president director Galumbang Menak Simanjuntak, University of Indonesia (UI) human development expert Yohan Suryanto, PT Huawei Investment account director Mukti Ali, and PT Solitech Media Sinergy commissioner Irwan Hermawan.

 

"As long as the evidence is sufficient, there is no reason not to apprehend the person in question," Ketut said in response to a question about the possibility of naming the minister as a suspect.

The official added that the AGO had questioned some 60 people about the BTS procurement project, which is headed by BAKTI, an agency under the Communications and Information Ministry. The project began in 2020.

By 2023, the ministry was supposed to have erected some 8,000 4G BTS towers in locations with poor connectivity, particularly in underdeveloped regions.

In the first development phase, which had a budget of Rp 10 trillion, the ministry sought to erect 4,200 BTS towers by 2021. It has reached only half that figure.

The project’s major delays raised suspicions of graft.

The Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) stepped in to audit the project in June 2022, and the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (PPATK) became involved in tracing the flow of funds in the project.

In November, the AGO seized documents from the Communications and Information Ministry for evidence.

Coincidence?

Political researcher Firman Noor of the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) said the corruption case was not likely to be related to Cabinet reshuffle rumors, as investigators had to carry out a lengthy procedure to name a suspect.

"It is more likely that the [rumored Cabinet shake-up and the planned questioning of Johnny] incidentally occurred at the same time," he said.

"People should not rush to conclude that the summons was related to the reshuffle issue. We should wait for developments in the investigation of the BTS corruption case," said political analyst Adi Prayitno of State Islamic University (UIN) Syarif Hidayatullah. (ahw)