Residents Demand Removal of Banyon Hamlet Chief in Bantul Over Certificate Fraud and Loan Allegations
Residents of Sewon, Bantul, staged a demonstration at the Pendowoharjo Village Office demanding the removal of the Banyon hamlet chief. The protest, which took place on Monday (29/6/2026) and was attended by hundreds of people, was driven by allegations of abuse of office that have caused public unease.
A representative of the Banyon residents, Zaki, stated that the hamlet chief had pawned a resident’s certificate for tens of millions of rupiah. Residents suspect the official was caught in a cycle of online loan debt. “There are many allegations against this hamlet official, one of which is pawning a certificate without the owner’s knowledge. The suspicion is that he did this because he was trapped by online loans,” he told reporters in Pendowoharjo.
Zaki added that the official had also previously asked for Rp4.5 million to help process a land certificate change, though that issue was resolved by the official’s father. “The second case involves a resident’s land certificate being pawned for Rp48 million, and to this day it remains unresolved. The official has been contacted frequently but keeps changing his phone number and is difficult to meet; this has been going on since 2020,” he said.
Residents claim to have held several audiences regarding the matter and are now demanding open, fair, and transparent accountability. “However, the authorities here have been too lenient, even though a performance record has been issued clearly detailing the misdeeds committed by Mr Hilmi, the hamlet official,” he continued.
The official is known to have served as the hamlet chief for 10 years and has already received a first warning letter (SP 1). Pendowoharjo Village Head Hilmi Hakimudin stated that residents are demanding the process move directly from the first warning to the official’s dismissal. The first warning was issued by the village administration in early June 2026.
“They are demanding that the process go from SP1 directly to the dismissal of the hamlet chief. However, we also ask the residents for their support. Do not just force us to do this without a strong basis,” he said. Hilmi requested approximately seven days to process the dismissal of the Banyon hamlet chief. “During these seven days, we will continue to coordinate with the Bantul Regency Government regarding the dismissal. The individual concerned has also failed to attend the village assembly five times,” he stated.
Regarding the case of embezzlement of a resident’s land certificate, Hilmi confirmed that it did occur and that the village has received two reports, one of which has been resolved. “For the embezzlement case from that report, we have actually resolved it. We resolved it through mediation, bringing together the hamlet chief, the victim, and other related parties,” he said. The village administration has also conducted an official interview (BAP) with the Banyon hamlet chief, during which he agreed to resolve the suspected embezzlement case. “We have conducted the BAP and the hamlet chief agreed to resolve the matter. He actually agreed but needs time to return the money because one of the amounts is large, Rp48 million. Therefore, to date, the agreement for the return of the money and the certificate has not been completed,” he said.