Top 3 National News: BGN's Shoe Polish Purchase to FHUI Case

The National Nutrition Agency (BGN) continues to attract scrutiny. Following questionable budget allocations such as the purchase of socks and electric trail motorcycles, the agency under the leadership of Dadan Hindayana has now been revealed to have bought packages of shoe polish and brushes worth Rp 1.5 billion. This news drew public attention on Friday, 17 April 2026. The BGN’s free nutritious meals project (MBG) has also come under spotlight from readers. According to a report by Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW), the MBG project affects teachers’ welfare and creates career uncertainty for them. Another attention-grabbing story is the protection for alleged victims of sexual violence in the environment of the Faculty of Law, University of Indonesia (FHUI). Here are the three most popular national news items in Tempo’s national section as of this morning, Saturday, 18 April 2026: BGN: Shoe Polish and Brushes Part of SPPI Facilities BGN Head Dadan Hindayana explained that the procurement of shoe polish and brush packages is part of the needs for the education and training of Sarjana Penggerak Pembangunan Indonesia (SPPI) in 2025. The programme is intended for participants prepared as supporting components in the implementation of the MBG project. Dadan said the SPPI education costs come from the BGN budget. However, the procurement of goods, including shoe polish and brushes, is carried out through a self-managed type II scheme involving the National Defence University. “So the procurement is at the National Defence University,” Dadan said when contacted on Friday, 17 April 2026. He explained that there are seven packages of individual field equipment provided to SPPI participants in the previous year. The total value of the procurement reaches around Rp 1.52 billion. The breakdown is Rp 1.25 billion for polish and around Rp 272 million for brushes. From that procurement package, according to him, the price per unit of polish was purchased for Rp 41,470 and the brush per unit Rp 10,780. Dadan stated that the procurement is intended for 30,299 SPPI education participants. Findings from ICW: Teachers Report Many Problems Due to MBG Indonesia Corruption Watch released a report on the impact of the free nutritious meals programme on teachers’ welfare. Data collected by ICW shows that 82% of teachers assess that the MBG programme affects their welfare and careers. ICW researcher Yassar Aulia explained that the data was obtained from a complaint channel opened by his organisation together with the Coalition to Save Indonesian Education, since 9 March 2026. As of 16 April 2026, 197 teachers with various employment statuses reported through that channel. “So, from the stories of the teachers who reported, in general, 87% feel that the MBG programme affects their welfare and creates career uncertainty,” said Yassar during a press conference at the ICW Resonansi Office, Jakarta, on Friday, 17 April 2026. Yassar elaborated that the reporters are educators from various levels of education and from various regions, starting from West Java, Banten, Aceh, Bali, to Riau. LPSK Will Protect Victims of Alleged Sexual Violence at UI The Witness and Victim Protection Agency (LPSK) will provide protection to victims of alleged sexual violence in the environment of the Faculty of Law, University of Indonesia. LPSK Deputy Chair Susilaningtias said this proactive step by LPSK is based on Article 29 paragraph (2) of the Witness and Victim Protection Law. Thus, LPSK can protect victims without waiting for requests from them. Susilaningtias said the LPSK team conducted outreach on 15–16 April 2026. They examined and delved into information, met with several parties at the Faculty of Law, University of Indonesia, including the Dean of the Faculty of Law UI, the UI Task Force for the Prevention and Handling of Sexual Violence (PPKS), student representatives, and the victim’s legal counsel. “To date, around 20 victims have given power of attorney to lawyers,” said Susilaningtias on Wednesday, 17 April 2026. “In the deepening process, LPSK found concerns among the victims, including potential pressure, threats, to the risk of identity exposure due to the spread of information in the digital space.” In addition, Susilaningtias said there are concerns about counter-reporting against victims using other legal provisions. This situation is assessed to be able to affect the victims’ courage to continue the case. Editor’s Choice: Event Organiser Services at BGN: From Meetings to Anti-Corruption Day