Pekalongan Regent Used WhatsApp Group 'Belanja RSUD' to Distribute Embezzled Funds
Pekalongan Regent Used WhatsApp Group ‘Belanja RSUD’ to Distribute Embezzled Money
The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) revealed that Pekalongan Regent Fadia Arafiq distributed the proceeds of her alleged corruption through a WhatsApp group named ‘Belanja RSUD’. ‘The management and distribution of the funds were arranged by FAR. The arrangement was conducted through communications in the WhatsApp Group named ’Belanja RSUD’ with her staff,’ said Asep Guntur Rahayu, Deputy for Enforcement and Execution at the KPK, at the Merah Putih Building on Wednesday (4/3). Asep also said that staff from Fadia helped with the withdrawal of the money. ‘For every withdrawal of funds for the Bupati, the staff always report, document, and send it through that WA Group,’ he said.
From 2023 to 2026, there were incoming transactions to PT Raja Nusantara Berjaya amounting to IDR 46 billion sourced from contracts between PT Raja Nusantara Berjaya and Regional Apparatus in the Pekalongan Regency. From that money, IDR 22 billion was used to pay outsourcing employee salaries. The remaining IDR 19 billion was enjoyed and distributed to each family member and close associates of Fadia. The breakdown includes IDR 5.5 billion for Fadia Arafiq; IDR 1.1 billion for her husband Mukhtaruddin Ashraff Abu; IDR 2.3 billion for RNB Director Rul Bayatun; IDR 4.6 billion to her son Muhammad Sabiq Ashraff; IDR 2.5 billion to Mehnaz Na in addition to her son; and cash withdrawals of IDR 3 billion.
Previously, Fadia was named the sole suspect in the case of alleged corruption in outsourcing service procurement and other procurement within the Pekalongan Regency Government for Budget Year 2023-2026. The case came to light from the KPK’s Operation Tangkap Tangan (OTT) conducted in the early hours of Tuesday, in Semarang, Central Java. A total of 14 individuals who were arrested were immediately subjected to intensive questioning upon arrival at the KPK office. The KPK held a case conference or expo to determine the legal status of the parties on Tuesday evening.