Pekalongan Regency Heads 'Extorted' for Eid Bonuses and Regent's Birthday, Amounts Range from Rp5-25 Million

Several heads of departments within the Pekalongan Regency Government, Central Java, were allegedly extorted for money by the inactive Regent, Fadia Arafiq, to cover Eid al-Fitr holiday allowances (THR) and birthday celebrations.

‘There were requests for money for THR, birthdays, and year-end funds,’ stated the Head of the Public Works and Spatial Planning Department, Murdiar $ ext{arso}$, while testifying as a witness in the corruption case trial involving defendant Fadia Arafiq at the Semarang Corruption Court on Friday.

According to the witness, the requests for money, which were communicated through the Head of the Economic Division, Siti Hanikatun, took place from 2022 to 2025. The witness admitted to providing varying amounts of money; for the Regent’s birthday, he contributed Rp5 million and Rp15 million. For the Eid allowance, Murdiarso admitted to depositing Rp15 million annually, while year-end funds ranged between Rp15 million and Rp25 million per year. Murdiarso stated that the funds provided to the Regent were sourced from his personal finances.

A similar situation was experienced by the Head of the Education and Culture Department of Pekalongan Regency, Kholid. ‘The aide-de-camp was the one making the requests, and the amounts were predetermined,’ he said during the trial presided over by Chief Judge Rightmen Situmorang. Kholid stated that between 2023 and 2025, the total amount deposited reached Rp240 million. He added that the funds were requested for the Regent’s Eid, birthday, and year-end needs, noting that the amounts were set based on the perceived ‘size’ of the respective departments.