KPK Chairman Discusses the High Cost of Imprisoning Corruptors: Their Meals Are Managed by the State
KPK Chairman Setyo Budiyanto stated that managing detainees for corruption crimes requires significant expenses. He noted that from meals to clothing in detention, everything is paid for by the state.
This was conveyed by Setyo during the launch of the Guidebook and Teaching Materials for Anti-Corruption Education (PAK) together with the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology at the Ministry of Home Affairs office, Jalan Medan Merdeka Utara, Central Jakarta, on Monday (11/5/2026). He said that the KPK wants to prioritise corruption prevention over enforcement, which is more costly.
“With the hope that if we provide this (book) rather than focusing on the enforcement process upfront, it is better to carry out prevention processes. Enforcement will definitely be more expensive, from start to finish, and even in prison, they are still managed by the state—their food, clothes, uniforms, and so on,” said Setyo.
He hopes that the book will serve as a guide for children to recognise corrupt behaviour from an early age at the school level. He targets that these children will have strong integrity and not commit corruption.
“We can leave behind what we consider a sacred scripture; we regard this book as one that is made by fellow humans with all their shortcomings and limitations, but it is a guide or manual for anti-corruption that we can give to our children and grandchildren,” he explained.
Setyo mentioned that anti-corruption education must be instilled from a young age. According to him, anti-corruption is taught in the classroom, not in the examination room.
“Instil that a future without corruption, the hope for today, tomorrow, and a future without corruption does not start from the examination room, does not start from the investigation room, let alone the courtroom. But let us all agree that a future without corruption starts from the classroom,” he stated.