Procurement of Shoes, Social Minister: If There is Corruption, We Will Report It Ourselves
Social Minister Saifullah Yusuf claims that he has continuously endeavoured to educate all ranks within the Ministry of Social Affairs against committing any deviations. He stated that he has repeatedly conveyed to his subordinates at the ministry not to engage in corruption in any form, including the procurement of shoes for the people’s school programme.
“If there is evidence, we will be the first party to report it to law enforcement authorities,” said Gus Ipul, as Saifullah is affectionately known, at the ministry’s office in Central Jakarta on Tuesday, 5 May 2026. He also assured that nothing is being concealed in the implementation of the ministry’s programmes.
Gus Ipul said he does not want the Ministry of Social Affairs to come under scrutiny again as in previous leaderships. “Let us learn from past experiences,” said Gus Ipul. He hopes that in the execution of the President’s strategic programmes such as the people’s school, there will be no deviant practices.
At present, said Gus Ipul, it is no longer the era of manipulating state budgets or engaging in collusion. “I remind you that it cannot be hidden. I have conveyed this to my colleagues at the Ministry of Social Affairs,” said Gus Ipul.
This statement from Gus Ipul also responds to the issue of the procurement of people’s school shoes circulating on social media. The issue of shoe procurement has gained more public attention after a photo of Gus Ipul with East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa went viral while distributing shoes to pupils of the people’s school in Malang, East Java.
Based on various social media posts, it is mentioned that the procurement price per pair of shoes does not match those distributed to pupils. The procurement price for each pair of shoes is known to be Rp700,000. However, in the photo with Khofifah, it was later revealed that the price of those local brand shoes from Yogyakarta ranges around Rp170,000.
Gus Ipul denied that the shoes distributed with Khofifah were part of the ministry’s shoe procurement. Gus Ipul said that the shoes distributed with Khofifah were a special donation provided by the East Java Governor for people’s school pupils in the East Java region.
“I also know about it on social media, the photo of me giving shoes with Mrs Khofifah. Those are shoes given by Mrs Khofifah, not by the Ministry of Social Affairs. Very different (quality). Not the standard for the people’s school,” he said when met at the Ministry of Social Affairs office in Central Jakarta on Tuesday, 5 May 2026.
He explained that the distribution was specifically carried out at one of the people’s schools in the Malang area. “So that’s not the shoes in question. That’s not procurement from the Ministry of Social Affairs,” he stated.
However, Gus Ipul could not specify the exact price of the shoes distributed with the East Java Governor. He only emphasised that the ministry’s procured shoes cost Rp500,000 to Rp700,000, with the actual purchase realisation prices ranging from Rp250,000 to Rp640,000.