Agriculture Minister sacks ASN over Rp500 million budget misappropriation, now a DPO
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Agriculture Minister Andi Amran Sulaiman has dismissed a civil servant within his ministry amid allegations of misappropriating nearly Rp500 million from agricultural budgets, and the person is now on the wanted list (DPO) of law enforcement authorities.
The dismissal was formally carried out on 7 May 2026 as part of the Ministry of Agriculture’s internal clean-up measures in taking firm action against suspected abuse of state funds.
“We have just signed the dismissal; on 7 May 2026 we terminated the individual with initials C, who is now a DPO,” the minister said in Jakarta on Tuesday.
According to Amran, misuse of state budget funds constitutes betrayal of the people’s trust, especially as the government is focusing on strengthening national food security through various strategic agricultural programmes.
He stressed that there is no room for compromise with corruption or budget manipulation within the Ministry of Agriculture, in line with President Prabowo Subianto’s orders to tighten internal government oversight.
“We have only just issued the dismissal. This is to ensure that all parties connected to agriculture are vigilant against the mafia that roams around,” he said.
According to Amran, the agricultural sector currently has a large budget, making it ripe for misuse by certain individuals if oversight is not conducted strictly and on an ongoing basis.
The Ministry of Agriculture also hopes that law enforcement agencies will promptly arrest the ASN with initials C to uncover possible involvement of others, both from inside and outside the ministry.
Amran said his office wants to root out all practices of budget manipulation in the agricultural sector because government funds are sourced from the people and must be accounted for transparently.
“We are indeed being maligned; especially if we are not doing right. I sometimes feel sad when I fire someone, but we must do it,” he asserted.
When asked further about the position of the ASN, Amran only confirmed that the individual is a staff member within the Ministry of Agriculture, without detailing the unit or location of their assignment.
He also did not disclose in detail the projects related to the alleged misappropriation because the pursuit of the suspect is ongoing and could hinder the arrest by authorities.
According to him, more detailed disclosures about the case will be provided after the ASN with initials C is captured, enabling the legal process to proceed openly while also revealing other individuals suspected of involvement.
“Hopefully he will be captured and we will identify who his associates are in agriculture and beyond. We must clean this up. That is the President’s instruction: no more compromises, no more room for playing around. This is the people’s money we must account for,” Amran said.