JK on Rismon's Denial of Involving His Name in Jokowi's Diploma Issue: It Means Nothing to Me

Jakarta – Former Vice President of Indonesia, Jusuf Kalla, has spoken out regarding Rismon Sianipar’s denial that he never implicated Kalla in the case of the alleged fake diploma of the seventh President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo.

According to him, Rismon’s denial merely states that he did not do it himself, but does not refute the content of the statement claiming that Jusuf Kalla gave Rp5 billion to Roy Suryo and others.

“But whatever the denial, he only says it wasn’t him who did it, but he doesn’t deny the content. He doesn’t deny it. He only denies that he made it. It could be that he asked someone else to do it. He doesn’t deny that I paid Rp5 billion,” explained Jusuf Kalla to reporters on Wednesday, 8 April 2026.

Meanwhile, regarding Rismon’s denial that the matter was the result of artificial intelligence (AI), Jusuf Kalla emphasised that it holds no significance.

“If he denies that it’s not true, that Mr JK gave Rp5 billion, gave money, there might be some benefit. But if he says it’s AI, that means nothing to me,” he stated.

Furthermore, in relation to this incident, Jusuf Kalla also admitted that there has been no apology from Rismon.

“There isn’t (an apology). I don’t know the person anyway. I’ve never met him,” he clarified.

Previously, it was reported that the polemic over the alleged fake diploma of the seventh President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo, has heated up again. This time, the spotlight is on the report filed by Jusuf Kalla to the National Police Criminal Investigation Agency against Rismon Sianipar over accusations of his involvement in the Jokowi diploma case.

However, Rismon’s legal team has asserted that their client never implicated JK in the polemic.

Rismon’s legal representative, Jahmada Girsang, firmly denied the accusations that his client dragged Jusuf Kalla’s name into the alleged masterminding of funding for the Jokowi fake diploma issue. He even described the widely circulated information in the public as a hoax suspected to be the result of artificial intelligence (AI) fabrication.

Jahmada stated that his client never issued a statement implicating Jusuf Kalla in the polemic that is currently under public scrutiny.