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Prosecutors seek 15 years for ex-communications minister
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Former Communications and Information Minister Johnny G Plate (second right) is escorted when leaving the courtroom of the Jakarta Corruption Court on Oct. 25, 2023. Attorney General's Office (AGO) prosecutors have demanded judges sentence him to 15 years in prison, as well as paying Rp 1 billion (US$63,000) in fines and Rp 17.8 billion in restitution for accepting kickbacks pertaining the government 4G telephony program. (Antara/Akbar Nugroho Gumay)
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rosecutors from the Attorney General’s Office (AGO) have demanded a 15-year prison sentence for former communications and information minister Johnny G. Plate for allegedly accepting kickbacks in a bribery case pertaining to a government 4G telephony project.
They also demanded that Johnny, a NasDem politician, pay a Rp 1 billion (US$63,000) fine or serve an additional one year in prison.
“We demand that he pay Rp 17.8 billion in restitution or serve an additional 7.5 years’ imprisonment,” the prosecutor said as he read out the sentence-demand letter against Johnny at the Jakarta Corruption Court on Wednesday.
Prosecutors have accused Johnny of pocketing some Rp 17.8 billion in kickbacks from inflated procurement in the project to erect some 8,000 4G base transceiver stations (BTS) in underdeveloped regions.
The project kicked off in 2020 after Johnny was appointed as minister. It was led by the Telecommunications and Information Accessibility Agency (BAKTI) under the communications ministry.
Johnny allegedly planned a scheme with BAKTI president director Anang Achmad Latif and telecom infrastructure company PT More Telematika Indonesia president director Galumbang Menak Simanjuntak, so the agency would lead the BTS project.
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