Ministry of Finance Clarifies Purbaya's Statement on Judicial Review of State Budget Act over Free Nutritious Meals Programme
Jakarta, VIVA – The Ministry of Finance has clarified statements made by Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa in response to a legal challenge brought by honorary teachers against Law Number 17 of 2025 on the State Revenue and Expenditure Budget (APBN) for Fiscal Year 2026.
The Head of the Ministry of Finance’s Bureau of Communication and Information Services, Deni Surjantoro, stated that Minister Purbaya never explicitly declared that the legal challenge would fail.
“Rather, the Minister was conveying the conditional prerequisites of any legal challenge — namely that a petition could either lose or win,” said Deni in a statement on Friday, 20 February 2026.
He explained that the context of Purbaya’s remarks was that if the legal basis for the challenge were strong, the petition could succeed, whereas if the basis were weak, it could fail.
Deni affirmed that the Ministry of Finance respects the aspirations of honorary teachers who have filed a judicial review of the State Budget Act at the Constitutional Court, particularly regarding the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) programme.
According to Deni, Minister Purbaya had no intention of belittling or disregarding the struggles and aspirations of honorary teachers.
Deni added that Minister Purbaya also understands that honorary teachers play a vital role in the national education system and are an inseparable part of Indonesia’s human resource development priorities.
“The Ministry of Finance invites all parties to respond to information in its full and proportionate context, and to prioritise constructive dialogue for the strengthening of national education policy,” he said.
Previously, Purbaya had responded to the judicial review of the 2026 State Budget Act during a doorstop interview at the Parliamentary Complex in Jakarta on Wednesday, 18 February 2026.
“We shall see what the outcome is. A challenge can lose or win. I think [the judicial review] is weak. If it is weak, it will certainly lose. But we shall see what the outcome is,” Purbaya said.
The Constitutional Court has received at least three petitions for judicial review of Law Number 17 of 2025 on the 2026 State Budget, all of which challenge the financing arrangements for the MBG programme.
The three petitions are: Case Number 40/PUU-XXIV/2026, filed by the Yayasan Taman Belajar Nusantara; Case Number 52/PUU-XXIV/2026, filed by lecturer Rega Felix; and Case Number 55/PUU-XXIV/2026, filed by honorary teacher Reza Sudrajat.
All three petitions challenge Article 22 paragraph (3) of the 2026 State Budget Act and its elucidation, which classifies the MBG programme under operational funding for education provision, drawn from the education budget.