Sudewo Denies Extorting Village Official Candidates, Claims Name Was Used

REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, SEMARANG – Former Pati Regent Sudewo has denied committing extortion against candidates for village apparatus positions in his region. He claims his name was misused in the case.

“For the filling of village apparatus positions, it is clearly the authority of the village head, not the regent,” Sudewo said when interviewed by journalists after attending his first hearing at the Semarang Corruption Court, Central Java, on Monday (15/6/2026).

He added that the village head’s authority in filling village apparatus positions is regulated by Pati Regent Regulation Number 35 of 2023. “It is clearly the village’s authority, not mine. It differs from the previous regent who took over that authority. So, that regent’s authority violated the law,” he stated.

“So there was a money collection activity by the village head, I knew nothing about it. My name was used, I also did not know. To whom the money would be given, I did not know,” Sudewo added.

Sudewo said that, unlike village apparatus, he had the authority to appoint and transfer officials within the Pati Regency Government. However, Sudewo also claimed he never engaged in buying and selling positions within the Pati Regency Government.