Investigation into Five Officials Over Tax Refunds, Purbaya Dismisses Two Among Them

Jakarta – Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa has stated that his office will dismiss two officials from the Ministry of Finance to address issues in the disbursement of tax refunds. After investigating five officials involved in refund management, Purbaya confirmed that two of them will be removed. “I investigated five high-ranking officials who issued the most refunds. Today, I will dismiss two,” Purbaya said at the Ministry of Finance in Jakarta on Monday, 4 May 2026. However, Purbaya did not disclose the names of the officials to be dismissed. He explained that the investigation stemmed from his findings regarding the value of tax refunds disbursed in the 2025 fiscal year, which did not match the reports he received. Initially, Purbaya received reports from his staff indicating that the tax refund value was relatively low. However, at the end of the fiscal year, he discovered that the disbursement value had jumped several times over the information he had received. “That is what we will fix. There must not be any misinformation again,” Purbaya stated. His decision to dismiss the officials is a firm action against the deviations occurring within the Ministry of Finance. He hopes that with this sanction, officials in the Ministry of Finance can carry out their duties in accordance with the mandates received and avoid fraudulent practices. “The message is, when there is such an instruction, carry it out properly. Do not go overboard. Going overboard means not reporting developments accurately,” he said. It is known that Purbaya had previously dismissed two Directors General, which he described as part of routine staff rotation policy in the Ministry of Finance. The two were Febrio Nathan Kacaribu, previously the Director General of Economic and Fiscal Strategy (DJSEF), and Luky Alfirman as Director General of Budget. “That is just a normal process, rotated every few years. So, there is nothing special about it,” Purbaya said. When confirmed regarding allegations of internal conflicts, Purbaya did not deny that organisational dynamics were one of the factors influencing his decision, although the portion was relatively small. “Yes and no. Yes, there is a little (influence from internal conflicts), but not just that. There are other things,” he stated.