Chromebook Hearing: LKPP Deputy Affirms Direct Procurement Negotiations with Manufacturers Allowed
JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - The Deputy for Law and Dispute Resolution at the Government Goods/Services Procurement Policy Agency (LKPP), Setya Budi Arijanta, has affirmed that manufacturers are permitted to sell directly to the government in the procurement of goods and services.
Setya made this statement when asked for his opinion as an expert witness in the continuation of the trial for the alleged corruption case regarding the procurement of Chromebook-based laptops within the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology (Kemendikbudristek).
“Government Regulation (PP) on Trade Implementation, PP number 29 of 2021, does indeed have an article stating that manufacturers may not sell directly to consumers. Yes, that’s correct. However, the subsequent paragraph provides an exception: this prohibition does not apply to government procurement,” Setya said during the hearing at the Jakarta Corruption Court, Thursday (2/4/2026).
He cited as an example a procurement where negotiations were conducted directly with the manufacturer at the factory, namely for interactive flat panels (IFP), or smartboards, as proposed by President Prabowo Subianto.
He mentioned that the state requires around 300,000 smartboard units, necessitating his involvement in the negotiation process up to the manufacturer.
“If you’re buying 300,000 units, you go straight to the factory. The price drops significantly. Earlier, I proved that Rp 100 million became Rp 26 million. The President was shaking his head yesterday. How is that possible? (said Prabowo),” Setya stated.
He also emphasised the importance of conducting market surveys to check prices.
According to Setya, many procurement officials fail to carry out market surveys and instead directly negotiate based on prices displayed in the e-catalogue.
However, the e-catalogue shows prices from resellers, who are several levels removed in the product sales supply chain.
“Friends, they never do market surveys; they just negotiate with what’s shown in the catalogue, sir. That’s the reseller. Resellers are at level five. From manufacturer to reseller, there are five levels,” Setya said.
Based on LKPP calculations, from the manufacturer to the second-level seller and beyond, there needs to be a price increase of 11.5 percent per level.
When taxes are added, this figure can reach 21.5 percent, meaning that negotiating prices with resellers can lead to overpricing.
Setya also touched on the reason why manufacturers are reluctant to negotiate prices, as many only hold the Indonesian Standard Industrial Classification (KBLI) for manufacturers.
Meanwhile, procurement officials set rules that negotiations can only be conducted with KBLI for resellers.