Note from the Communications & Information Ministry

Various political speculations promptly ensued after Minister of Communications and Information Johnny G. Plate was named and detained as a suspect in a corruption case.

KOMPAS/HENDRA A SETYAWAN

Minister of Communication and Informatics Johnny G Plate (center) wearing a special vest after being questioned at the Attorney General's Office Building, Jakarta, Wednesday (17/5/2023).

The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) announced that Johnny was a suspect of alleged corruption in the 4G base transceiver station development project and supporting infrastructure packages 1-5 of the ministry’s Telecommunications and Information Accessibility Agency (Bakti). According to the calculations of the Development Finance Comptroller, the case incurred losses of Rp 8.032 trillion to the state.

An AGO investigation team searched the offices of the Communications and Information Ministry on 7 Nov. 2022. Five people were legally processed before Plate was declared a suspect.

Plate is the third minister in the second-term government of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to be subjected to legal action. Before him were Social Affairs Minister Juliari P. Batubara and Fisheries and Maritime Affairs Minister Edhy Prabowo.

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Two ministers in the first-term administration of President Jokowi faced legal action: Social Affairs Minister Idrus Marham and Youth and Sports Minister Imam Nahrawi

Although the investigation has been underway since 2022 and he is not the first minister in the Jokowi administration to undergo the legal process, the case implicating Plate has still drawn public attention and caused several speculations. These speculations concern not only who will replace Plate as communications and information minister, but also the impact on the political constellation for the 2024 general election.

KOMPAS/HENDRA A SETYAWAN

Minister of Communication and Informatics Johnny G Plate is in the detention car after being questioned at the Attorney General's Office Building, Jakarta, Wednesday (17/5/2023).

The speculations have been sparked by the position of the NasDem Party, of which Plate is a member. This happens because although NasDem is part of President Jokowi’s government coalition, it and two opposition parties, the Democratic Party and the Prosperous Justice Party, have formed the Coalition of Change for Unity (KPP). The KPP has named Anies Baswedan as its presumptive candidate for the 2024 general election.

To date, the KPP and other alliances that have been formed for the 2024 general election, such as the United Indonesia Coalition and the Great Indonesia Awakening Coalition, have been unclear about their course. The alliances have still not formally announced their presidential and vice presidential nominees candidates. Many of the parties in these alliances seem to have adopted the slogan “waiting until the last minute”.

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Apart from the political dynamics that may ensue, the main challenge for the case surrounding Plate is conducting a speedy, thorough and fair investigation. This challenge has arisen not only because of the huge amount of state losses involved, but also for the purpose of preserving our unity as a nation, which in this case includes guaranteeing equal treatment before the law.

Another aspect is that all five ministers who were persecuted during Jokowi’s two terms in office are affiliated with political parties. One of the tasks of political parties is to prepare their members to fill government positions. Many party members also have the capacity to fulfill their appointments. However, they should not misuse their government positions for purposes such as garnering funds to serve their parties’ short-term interests. This should be watched out for, especially in times like the present, when parties need a large amount of funds to win the general election.

This article was translated by Aris Prawira.