Social Affairs Minister Gus Ipul Relieves Two Officials in Wake of People's School Procurement Issues

Social Affairs Minister (Mensos) Saifullah Yusuf, or Gus Ipul, has relieved two officials at the Ministry of Social Affairs (Kemensos) from their duties. Gus Ipul explained that the step was taken to facilitate the evaluation and investigation process for the procurement of goods and services, particularly shoe equipment for People’s School students, which has been widely discussed recently. “I am temporarily relieving them from their positions as follows. (First) the Head of the Goods and Services Procurement Services Section as the Commitment Making Officer in the General Secretariat Work Unit. Second, the Head of the Equipment and State Property Sub-section,” said Gus Ipul during a press conference, quoted on Thursday, 14 May 2026. He then assigned the Inspector General (Irjen) of Kemensos to continue the in-depth investigation as well as conduct the evaluation and investigation. He also requested the Secretary General (Sekjen) of Kemensos to carry out budget rationalization for the 2026 procurement, strengthen the procurement team’s capacity, and provide direct oversight. “Everything we have done is part of the evaluation to improve procurement in 2026,” stated Gus Ipul. Gus Ipul affirmed that his side has consulted with the KPK and Police so that Kemensos can carry out accountable, transparent goods and services procurement that is acceptable as clean from corruption. It was previously known that there was a viral issue on social media regarding alleged price markups for shoes given to People’s School students. In response to this, the Mensos formed a special team to delve into goods and services procurement issues at Kemensos following information that became controversial on social media. Gus Ipul appointed Deputy Social Affairs Minister (Wamensos) Agus Jabo Priyono and the Irjen of Kemensos to lead the special team. The formation of this special team, he said, aims to provide the public with a more complete picture of the issues that have become controversial on social media. “So that we can get a clearer and more complete picture of the issues that have been circulating on social media so far. Because news is sometimes entirely true, sometimes half true,” said Gus Ipul.