Why the KPK Needs Former Transport Minister Budi Karya's Testimony in DJKA Corruption Case
The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) requires testimony from Budi Karya Sumadi, who served as Minister of Transport under Indonesia’s seventh president Joko Widodo, to fully uncover the alleged corruption case within the Directorate General of Railways (DJKA).
Budi Karya had been scheduled for examination as a witness on Wednesday, 18 February 2026, but failed to appear.
“The need to summon witness BKS is necessary to obtain testimony relating to projects at DJKA, because DJKA falls under the Ministry of Transport,” said KPK spokesperson Budi Prasetyo at the Red and White Building in Jakarta on Monday (23 February).
The KPK uncovered the alleged corruption case — involving the receipt of bribes by state officials within DJKA in connection with railway construction projects in South Sulawesi, Central Java, West Java, and the Java–Sumatra corridor during the 2018–2022 fiscal years — through a sting operation in 2023.
At the time, the KPK successfully apprehended 25 individuals: 16 in Jakarta and Depok (West Java), eight in Semarang, and one in Surabaya.
During the operation, the KPK also discovered and seized evidence including approximately Rp2.027 billion in cash, US$20,000, debit cards worth Rp346 million, and bank account balances of Rp150 million — totalling roughly Rp2.823 billion.
A number of suspects, including Director of Railway Infrastructure Harno Trimadi, Commitment-Making Official for the Central Java region Bernard Hasibuan, Head of the Central Java regional office Putu Sumarjaya, as well as Director of PT KA Manajemen Properti Yoseph Ibrahim and Vice President of PT KA Manajemen Properti Parjono, have already been tried at the Corruption Court.
The examination of Budi Karya is intended to complete the case file for suspect Harno Trimadi, specifically to probe deeper into the alleged corruption relating to DJKA projects in the East Java region.
“In this case there are a number of projects across several locations — in Sulawesi, then in the eastern Java area around Surabaya, then in central Java along the Semarang corridor, as well as the Yogyakarta and Solo corridors, and also in West Java, even extending to Sumatra. All of these fall under DJKA. That means they are under the Ministry of Transport, so testimony from the minister at the time is naturally required,” Budi said.
“His knowledge relates to the projects carried out at DJKA, where in the execution of those projects there was alleged bid-rigging and manipulation of winners, leading to suspected flows of project funds to parties within DJKA. That is what will continue to be investigated, including the fact that in this case the KPK has most recently named SDW [Sudewo] as a suspect from the House of Representatives cluster,” he added.
Harno Trimadi had previously been prosecuted for alleged bribery totalling Rp3.2 billion, comprising Rp2.6 billion, S$30,000 (equivalent to Rp337 million), and US$20,000 (equivalent to Rp304 million).
The panel of judges at the Central Jakarta District Court on Monday, 11 December 2023, sentenced Harno to five years’ imprisonment and a fine of Rp200 million, with a subsidiary penalty of four months’ detention.
In addition, Harno was ordered to pay restitution of Rp900 million, US$20,000, and S$30,000, with a subsidiary penalty of two years’ imprisonment.
Harno’s offences were committed jointly with Fadliansyah, a Commitment-Making Official for Railway Infrastructure Maintenance at DJKA under the Ministry of Transport, who was sentenced to four years’ imprisonment and a fine of Rp200 million with a subsidiary penalty of four months’ detention, plus restitution of Rp625 million with a subsidiary penalty of one year’s imprisonment.