Regional Secretary Repeats Warnings to Pekalongan Regent Fadia Arafiq Over Conflict of Interest, but They Were Not Heeded

JAKARTA - The Regional Secretary (Sekda) and several other parties have repeatedly reminded Pekalongan Regent Fadia Arafiq of potential conflicts of interest in her involvement with the company founded by Fadia in relation to the Pekalongan Regency government procurement projects. Asep Guntur Rahayu, Deputy for Enforcement and Execution at the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), said the warnings had been ignored by Fadia. “The Regional Secretary and several other parties have explained that they have repeatedly reminded the Bupati about the potential conflict of interest in the procurement,” he said at a press conference at the Merah Putih Building, Jakarta, on Wednesday (4/3/2026). “Nevertheless, the practice continued by the Bupati,” he added. “The KPK team also secured evidence in the form of one unit of a vehicle owned by RUL and electronic evidence (BBE) belonging to the related parties,” he added. The case began when Fadia, who had been Bupati Pekalongan for just one year in the 2021-2025 period, established a company called PT RNB (Raja Nusantara Berjaya). The company, run with her husband Mukhtaruddin Ashraff Abu, a member of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR RI), and their son Muhammad Sabiq Ashraff, who sits on the Pekalongan Regency Council (DPRD), operates in the provision of services and has actively served as a vendor in the procurement of goods and services (PBJ) within the Pekalongan Regency Government. In 2024, Fadia replaced the position of Director of PT RNB with her trusted associate, Rul Bayatun. After one year of operation, from 2023 to 2026, PT RNB is known to have secured outsourcing service procurement projects across several Pekalongan Regency government units,’ he explained. For her actions, Fadia is charged with corruption under Article 12 letter i and Article 12 B of Law Number 31 of 1999 on the Eradication of Corruption as amended by Law Number 20 of 2001, and Jo. Article 127 paragraph (1) of Law Number 1 of 2023 on the Criminal Code (KUHP).