Emotional Moment in Chromebook Procurement Case Trial: Nadiem Disappointed, Ibrahim Arief Breaks Down in Tears Remembering the Past

Disappointed, sad, and in tears, the court conducted the continuation of the case of alleged corruption in Chromebook-based laptop procurement for the former Minister of Education, Culture, Research and Technology, Nadiem Makarim, on Thursday (5 March 2026). The session moved to examining crown witnesses, three defendants in the case: Ibrahim Arief, a former Technology Consultant within the Kemendikbudristek; Mulyatsyah, Director of SMP Kemendikbudristek in 2020–2021 and also the Budget User (KPA); and Sri Wahyuningsih, Director of SD Kemendikbudristek in 2020–2021 and also KPA. In addition to these three, former special staff Fiona Handayani was also noted to be involved as minister. The four individuals were examined as crown witnesses in a trial that lasted approximately 10 hours. Some of them were Chromebook manufacturers, such as Acer, Asus, Dell, and Advan. Nadiem said he was disappointed and sad after listening to the vendor explanations. Not about the witnesses’ statements, but about the protracted trial. “I am very disappointed today. And sad that we could reach this point, this case,” said Nadiem, shaking his head. According to Nadiem, many trial facts demonstrate that the procurement was not problematic, but the case arose due to negligence by a government body. He highlighted the government loss figure calculated by BPKP at Rp 2.1 trillion, comprising Rp 1.5 trillion for Chromebook procurement and Rp 600 million for Chrome Device Management (CDM) procurement. “The Rp 1.5 trillion is the result of a BPKP audit after I was detained. The audit was hurried to publish… It turns out that what was referred to as that is the price difference between what the audit says the loss should be here, and its real price,” Nadiem said. However, the vendors testified that their selling prices largely aligned with the figures calculated by BPKP. During the session, Nadiem briefly asked the vendors, “So, I ask all the witnesses, is the Rp 4.3 million figure in line with the national loss audit?” “They said it was not at all reasonable, not possible. Everyone loses money. Distributors lose, resellers lose. It is not possible that Rp 4.3 million is a reasonable purchase price,” he continued. In response to this, Nadiem admitted he was confused and disappointed. He said BPKP had made a miscalculation. “This is why I am so confused and disappointed, that a mistake in the calculation could lead to the Rp 2 trillion that has been disseminated,” he said. Sri Wahyuningsih drew attention for having once given Rp 50 million and a mobile phone to her superior, the former Director General of Primary and Secondary Education of the Ministry of Education and Culture (Dirjen PAUDasmen) Jumeri. Sri explained briefly regarding the Rp 50 million gift. She claimed she possessed evidence showing that the gift was not related to Chromebook procurement but to activities that complied with the rules. “Indeed, the total amounting to Rp 50 million to Mr Jumeri, and when Mr Jumeri testified, I had already confirmed receipts. And Mr Jumeri also admitted that it came from several activities, and at that time I had shown the receipts,” Sri explained.