LPDP Scholarship Recipient Who Renounced Indonesian Citizenship Asked to Return Funds with Interest

JAKARTA — Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa has called on a recipient of a scholarship from the Education Fund Management Institution (LPDP) who has been in the public spotlight to return the education funds she received, including interest. He also confirmed that a blacklist sanction would be imposed not only on the recipient but also on her husband.

Purbaya made the statement in response to the controversy surrounding Dwi Sasetyaningtyas, an Indonesian citizen who received an LPDP scholarship. Tyas became the subject of public discussion after uploading a video expressing her happiness when her second child officially became a British citizen through naturalisation.

The post drew criticism from netizens who questioned the commitment of a scholarship recipient funded by the nation’s education endowment, sourced from taxpayer money.

“Fundamentally, this is what we find regrettable. We will enforce the existing LPDP regulations, so that the individual concerned fulfils her obligations,” said Purbaya during the APBN KiTa media briefing for February 2026 in Jakarta on Monday (23/2/2026).

He said he had communicated with the LPDP President Director and relevant parties. According to him, the recipient’s husband had expressed willingness to return the funds used.

When asked whether the repayment would include interest, Purbaya responded firmly. “Including the interest. If I put my money in a bank, there would be interest too,” he said.

Purbaya stressed that LPDP scholarships are not the government’s personal funds but rather public money collected from taxes and state financing. The funds are set aside through an endowment scheme to develop Indonesia’s human resources.

“This is money from taxes and partly from debt that we set aside to ensure our human resources can grow,” he said.

He confirmed that the blacklist sanction would be applied seriously. “I will blacklist them. They will not be able to enter any part of government service,” he said. When asked whether the sanction applied to both the recipient and her husband, he replied, “Both of them.”