AGO Says Sony Sonjaya Could Intervene and Cancel SPPG Candidates

The Attorney General’s Office (Kejagung) has stated that former Deputy Head of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN), Sony Sanjaya, could intervene with the verifiers for the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) programme partners, going so far as to cancel the approval of Nutrition Fulfilment Service Units (SPPG). Director of Investigation at the Junior Attorney General for Special Crimes, Syarief Sulaeman Nahdi, said Sony had a trusted associate who assisted him in the alleged corruption case concerning the governance of the MBG programme. He explained that Sony’s trusted associate is Asep Yusuf Somantri, who was named a suspect and detained on Saturday, 6 June. “AYS is a private party requested by suspect SS (Sony Sonjaya), as Deputy Head of BGN, to find partners for the implementation of the MBG programme,” he stated during a press conference on Thursday, 11 June. Syarief said that during the implementation, Asep Yusuf was given internal access by Sony, enabling him to intervene with the MBG partner verification team. Through this access, Asep Yusuf could identify which location points still lacked an SPPG for the MBG programme. Furthermore, Asep Yusuf could also cancel the status of SPPG candidates who had already registered and been approved, allowing them to be replaced with SPPGs affiliated with Sony. “He identified vacant kitchen points and manipulated the situation so that SPPG candidates who had registered on the MBG partner portal and had been approved would subsequently have their registration status cancelled,” he clarified. In addition, Asep Yusuf could facilitate the establishment of SPPGs at points that should have already been closed. Furthermore, Syarief said the perpetrator handed over payment to Sony. “After arranging these SPPG points, AYS unlawfully provided a sum of money to suspect SS,” he stated. For their actions, the suspects are charged under Article 12 letters a and b of the Corruption Eradication Law and Articles 605 paragraph 2 and 606 of the Criminal Code. “The suspect is currently being detained for the next 20 days at the Salemba Detention Centre, South Jakarta Prosecutor’s Office Branch,” he added. Previously, the Attorney General’s Office named former Head of the National Nutrition Agency (BGN) Dadan Hindayana alongside former Deputy Heads Sony Sonjaya and Lodewyk Pusung as suspects in the corruption case concerning the governance of the MBG programme. In this case, the Director of Investigation Syarief explained that the MBG programme was supposed to be managed by foundations affiliated with recipient schools. However, in practice, many SPPGs were appointed because they had affiliations with BGN officials. Syarief stated that these foundations essentially did not meet the requirements to become SPPG partners. The three also allegedly marked up procurement prices for goods, causing losses that did not support the operational execution of the MBG programme, including 21,801 electric motorcycles valued at IDR 1.03 trillion, 32,000 pairs of shoes, 31,994 tablets, and 5,400 75-inch televisions.