Former Ombudsman Yeka Hendra Fatika Charged with Obstruction of Justice in Cooking Oil Corruption Case

Former Indonesian Ombudsman member Yeka Hendra Fatika has been named a suspect for obstruction of justice in a corruption case concerning the management of crude palm oil and cooking oil. Director of Special Investigations at the Attorney General’s Office, Syarief Sulaeman Nahdi, told reporters on Monday, 25 May 2025. ‘After conducting several investigations and gathering a series of evidence, our investigative team has named YHF, a member of the Indonesian Ombudsman for the 2021-2026 term, as a suspect in this case,’ he said. The Attorney General’s Office alleges that Yeka was involved in preparing the Ombudsman’s inspection report (LHP), which was later used as the basis for a lawsuit against the Ministry of Trade. Syarief explained that in February 2022, during the cooking oil shortage, Yeka initiated an Ombudsman investigation into the supply and stabilisation of cooking oil prices. However, investigators suspect Yeka altered the substance of the report. ‘YHF has changed the Ombudsman report’s content from addressing the cooking oil shortage to claiming the revocation of the Domestic Market Obligation (DMO) for export purposes, which was done unlawfully,’ Syarief said. Yeka Hendra Fatika, born in Garut on 13 June 1975, is a graduate of Bogor Agricultural University’s Agricultural Social and Economic Programme in 2001, according to Alumniipbpedia.id. He previously served as a lecturer in the Department of Agribusiness at IPB University’s Faculty of Economics and Management. In addition to his academic career, Yeka has also worked as a consultant for regional governments and the Ministry of Agriculture. He held the position of Chairman of the Centre for Agricultural Food Studies and Advocacy (PATAKA) from 2016 to 2020. He was later appointed as an Ombudsman commissioner for the 2021-2026 term.