Nadiem's Lawyer Reiterates Chromebook Trial Facts: Prices Align with Market Rates, Millions of Devices Still in Use

The legal team representing former Minister of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology (Mendikbudristek) Nadiem Makarim reaffirmed a number of facts disclosed during the continued trial into the Chromebook procurement case. The facts are seen as clarifying that the procurement did not involve overpricing and remains widely used by students and teachers across Indonesia. In the hearing held on Monday, 2 March 2026, the legal team assessed that various testimonies actually reinforced that the price of the Chromebook procurement was within market price ranges and did not cause state losses. One important fact emerged from the testimony of Idi Sumardi, a member of the technical team that prepared the procurement study during the Mendikbudristek era. He explained that the technology study and price surveys had been conducted in accordance with procedures, both through the e-catalog and outside the e-catalog. Based on the survey results, the market price of Chromebooks ranged from Rp4.3 million to Rp9.1 million. The technical team also did not find devices priced below Rp3 million as had been previously suggested. ‘As far as I recall, I have not seen anything at Rp3 million. It shows Rp4 million if I’m not mistaken. In the e-catalog it is Rp4.4 million, outside the e-catalog Rp4.3 million,’ Idi said on Wednesday, 4 March 2026. In response to the testimony, Nadiem Makarim stated that the findings were consistent with the testimony of Aris Supriyanto, Director of Advocacy at the Government Goods/Services Policy Institute (LKPP), at the previous hearing. It was said at that time that market prices for Chromebooks outside the e-catalog ranged around Rp5 - Rp7 million. ‘The price range in the market is between Rp5 - 7 million, and the Rp3 million price does not exist anywhere. The purchase price of Rp5.5 million is actually at the lower end of that range. If there is no price gouging, that means there is no state loss,’ said Nadiem. The trial also revealed the importance of the Chrome Device Management (CDM) feature installed on the Chromebook devices. The former Head of the Data and Information Centre at the Mendikbudristek, Muhammad Hasan Chabibie, explained that the feature enables centralized monitoring of device usage by schools. According to Hasan, CDM helps schools control laptop use by students, including preventing access to negative content such as pornography and online gambling, while also monitoring device activity.