Former Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology,\nNadiem Makarim, has claimed that the procurement of Chromebooks, which\nis currently being investigated by the Attorney General\u2019s Office,\nactually saved the budget by Rp3.9 trillion. This was stated by Nadiem\nwhile reading his defence plea at the Jakarta Corruption Court on\nTuesday.<\/p>\n
Nadiem explained that the budget savings resulted from the fact that\nprocuring laptops with Chrome OS required only Rp98 million per school,\nwhereas forcing the use of Windows devices would have required Rp148\nmillion per school. \u201cThe ministry\u2019s policy to choose the free Chrome OS\nhas absolutely saved the Indonesian state\u2019s expenditure by at least 3.9\ntrillion rupiah. This figure is far above the alleged state losses,\u201d\nNadiem said.<\/p>\n
He added, \u201cIf I am found guilty, does it mean the state believes the\nministry should have chosen the more expensive option? This is the irony\nof this case. I am facing a 27.5-year prison sentence for a policy that\nhas saved trillions in state funds.\u201d<\/p>\n
Furthermore, Nadiem claimed that the decision to select Chrome OS was\nnot within his authority as Minister, asserting that he never signed any\ndocuments related to the Chromebook procurement under the ministry. He\nnoted that recommendations for a combination of Windows and Chrome OS\nwere ultimately changed by the technical team to be entirely Chrome OS,\nwithout his decision.<\/p>\n
Nadiem also refuted allegations from the Public Prosecutor that the\nChromebook laptops are idle and useless in the field. He cited an audit\nby the BPKP (Financial and Development Supervisory Agency) proving that\n95 per cent of students, 86 per cent of teachers, and 57 per cent of\nheadmasters were still utilising Chromebooks during the 2023-2024\nperiod. \u201cChromebooks are widely used in both cities and regions with 3G\naccess. Based on trial facts and human resource login data, it is proven\nthat 85 per cent of all Chromebooks purchased since 2020 are still in\nuse in 2025,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n
Nadiem also expressed confusion as to why the procurement of\nChromebooks priced at approximately Rp5 million is being legally\nprocessed, while during the same period, laptop procurement for various\ngovernment agencies, including the Attorney General\u2019s Office and the\nSupreme Court, reached Rp11 million per unit\u2014twice the price of the\nChromebook. \u201cThe argument regarding state losses based on overpriced\nlaptops is very fragile. There was no involvement of mine in the\nprocurement, and there is no causality between the OS specification\npolicy and the laptop price,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
Previously, the Public Prosecutor of the Attorney General\u2019s Office\nrequested the Jakarta Corruption Court judges to sentence Nadiem Anwar\nMakarim to 18 years in prison and a fine of Rp1 billion, with a\nsubsidiary of 190 days in prison. The prosecution also demanded that\nNadiem pay restitution amounting to Rp809,597,125,000 and\nRp4,871,469,603,758, representing wealth disproportionate to his\nlegitimate income or suspected to originate from corruption. If the\nrestitution is not paid, it will be replaced by 9 years of imprisonment.\nThe prosecutors stated that the former Minister of Education under\nPresident Joko Widodo was proven to have caused state financial losses\nin the procurement of Chromebooks and CDM for the 2020-2022 fiscal\nyears.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/nadiems-plea-chromebook-programme-saved-rp3-9-trillion-in-budget-1780874676", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }