Awaiting Presidential Resolve

The Blueray Cargo Group import bribery case has implicated the Director General of Customs and Excise, Djaka Budhi Utama. During the trial at the Corruption Court, KPK prosecutors mentioned a meeting at the Borobudur Hotel in July 2025 allegedly attended by Djaka along with other Customs officials, Rizal, Sisprian Subiaksono, and Orlando Hamonangan (all named as suspects or defendants). John Field, representing Blueray Cargo, was also present at the meeting. Charges against three Blueray Cargo entrepreneurs—John Field, Dedy Kurniawan Sukolo, and Andri—allege they provided money and luxury goods to Customs officials to bypass red-line customs inspections for imported goods, including counterfeits and knock-offs. The total alleged bribes amount to Rp 61 billion. Djaka is suspected of receiving an envelope containing US$213,600 (approximately Rp 2.9 billion), though KPK spokesperson Budi Prasetyo stated no interview with Djaka has been scheduled yet. On one occasion, President Prabowo Subianto stated, “Customs must be improved. Finance Minister, if the Customs chief is incapable, replace him immediately.” This reflects the President’s commitment to cleansing the Customs department. During the 2027 PPKF speech, the President noted potential state revenue leaks from transfer pricing and under-invoicing amounting to Rp 15.4 trillion. Customs has drawn the President’s attention, with him stating, “We must improve Customs. I still remember during the New Order era, Customs was so bad we shut it down. We outsourced it to private entities and state revenue increased. Isn’t that sad? This is a struggle for all of us. I don’t want to demoralise anyone, but it’s time we speak honestly to ourselves and to the people.” The case reveals three layers of issues. First, technical corruption in the import process through manipulation of customs inspection lanes. Third, political pressure from President Prabowo on the Finance Minister to swiftly reform Customs, including replacing leadership if deemed incapable or implicated. Thus, the Blueray Cargo case is not merely an import bribery matter but also a test of the credibility of Customs reforms under Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa’s leadership. Naturally, the presumption of innocence must be upheld. Djaka is not necessarily guilty merely because his name appears in charges or court proceedings. However, the case should be viewed broadly as a reflection of governance failures, oversight deficiencies, merit system breakdown, and overall bureaucratic reforms within the Finance Ministry. Long before Djaka’s name surfaced in the Blueray Cargo trial, the author had criticised his appointment as Director General of Customs and Excise. In an article titled “The Beginning of Bureaucratic Reform’s Downfall: Merit System Failure”, published on Kompas.com on 2 June 2025, the author argued that the appointments of Bimo Wijayanto as Director General of Tax, Lieutenant General (Retired) Djaka Budi Utama as Director General of Customs and Excise, and Masyita Crystallin as Director General of Financial Sector Stability and Development potentially violated merit system principles under the Civil Service Law.