Bappenas Chief: Civil Servants Must Be Protected from Online Gambling and Illegal Lending

Minister of National Development Planning/Head of the National Development Planning Agency (PPN/Bappenas) Rachmat Pambudy has stated that the State Civil Apparatus (ASN) must be protected from the practices of online gambling and illegal online lending. “Protecting ASN from online gambling and illegal online lending is part of the effort to maintain governance,” he said during an event on the Prevention and Handling of Online Gambling and Illegal Online Lending for ASN, in an official statement in Jakarta on Wednesday. He affirmed his commitment to continuously strengthening the integrity of ASN in facing challenges in the digital era. On one hand, digital transformation has the potential to increase the capacity of ASN in the quality of public services and accelerate development. However, on the other hand, digital transformation also presents challenges, such as the rampant practices of online gambling and illegal online lending that can threaten the finances, mental health, and integrity of ASN. “The integrity of ASN is the foundation of a professional, accountable, and publicly trusted government. The success of national development is ultimately determined by the quality of ASN with integrity so that they are able to produce quality policies, good public services, and strengthen public trust,” said the Head of Bappenas. Secretary of the Ministry of PPN/Principal Secretary of Bappenas Teni Widuriyanti added that the growing phenomenon of online gambling and illegal online lending poses a serious threat to national development. “The impact is no longer limited to legal violations, but also affects the quality of human resources, family economic resilience, mental health, work productivity, and governance,” Teni said. Through this socialisation, ASN are expected to be increasingly able to recognise, prevent, and report online gambling and illegal online lending practices, while also becoming agents of change in building a healthy, productive, and high-integrity work environment. “Strengthening digital literacy and financial literacy is expected to equip ASN to maintain professionalism, improve the quality of public services, and strengthen public trust in supporting the achievement of Indonesia Emas 2045,” the Minister of PPN stated.