Central Java Governor Denies Being With Fadia Arafiq, Pekalongan Regent, During KPK Sting Operation

Pekalongan regent Fadia Arafiq said she was with Central Java Governor Ahmad Luthfi when the KPK sting operation took place in the early hours of Tuesday, 3 March. She told reporters as she was being escorted by KPK officers to the anti-corruption agency’s headquarters in Jakarta on Wednesday, 4 March, wearing an orange detainee’s jumpsuit.

Separately, Luthfi denied the claim. He did not confirm that he was with Fadia Arafiq at the time of the KPK sting. ‘No. Where did the information come from?’ Luthfi said when contacted on Wednesday afternoon. The former three-star Polri general said he knew nothing about Fadia’s statement at the KPK building. ‘We don’t know where she was arrested either,’ he added.

Earlier, Fadia had claimed she was with Luthfi when the KPK moved in. She insisted there was no OTT — it was only a raid, and nothing was seized or taken.

‘In short, I am not OTT; I did not take any item, and when they raided the house, I was with the Central Java Governor; there was no OTT, and there was no item taken,’ she told reporters at the KPK’s Red and White Building in South Jakarta.

Regarding the meeting, Fadia said she spoke with Ahmad Luthfi to obtain permission not to attend an event related to the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) programme. ‘We will discuss the permit tomorrow; I cannot attend the MBG event,’ she said.

Fadia also said she was confused by the term OTT. She maintained there was no OTT and no goods or money were seized.

The KPK conducted the operation in the early hours of Tuesday in Semarang, Central Java. The agency said it arrested Pekalongan regent Fadia Arafiq along with an aide and trusted advisers.

‘That in the early hours this morning, the team secured three people, one of whom is the Pekalongan regent and the other two are trusted aides of the regent,’ KPK spokesperson Budi Prasetyo told reporters at the Red and White Building of the KPK on Tuesday afternoon.

KPK has named suspects in relation to this OTT. Spokesperson Budi Prasetyo said the matter has been elevated to the investigation stage and there is now a legal status for those detained.

Regarding the arrests, the KPK team has sealed several offices, including the regent’s office. The front of the regent’s office, where a photo of Fadia hangs, has also been sealed by KPK.

Several rooms in the head of department’s offices, including the Dinas Pekerjaan Umum dan Penataan Ruang (DPU Taru), have also been sealed. In addition, seals were visible on the Pekalongan Secretary to the Regional Government (Sekda Pekalongan) office.