Attorney General's Office Grounds for Appealing Nadiem Makarim's Sentence

The Attorney General’s Office has stated that it is filing an appeal against the decision of the Anti-Corruption Court, which sentenced former Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology, Nadiem Anwar Makarim, to 10 years in prison in relation to the Chromebook procurement corruption case.

“The prosecution team has received a copy of the decision from the Anti-Corruption Court, and today the prosecution team has declared a legal effort to appeal the case,” said the Head of the Legal Information Centre of the Attorney General’s Office, Anang Supriatna, in Jakarta on Thursday (2/7).

Anang noted that one of the considerations in the appeal memorandum would be Nadiem’s current house arrest status. “The verdict stated that he remains in custody. Currently, the detention being undergone is house arrest. We will consider this in the appeal memorandum,” he said.

Despite filing the appeal, the Attorney General’s Office maintains its respect for the decision of the panel of judges at the Anti-Corruption Court of the Central Jakarta District Court. “We continue to appreciate and respect the court’s decision. However, the prosecution team is pursuing a legal appeal,” he added.

Previously, the panel of judges sentenced Nadiem to 10 years in prison after he was found guilty of corruption in the procurement of Chromebook laptops and Chrome Device Management (CDM) within the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology for the 2019–2022 period.

In addition to the prison sentence, he was fined Rp1 billion, with a subsidiary of 190 days of imprisonment, and ordered to pay restitution of Rp809.59 billion, with a subsidiary of five years in prison.

Nadiem has also stated that he will file an appeal against the verdict. He said the legal recourse is being taken to fight for the truth and to defend himself against the court’s decision.