Ade Ridwan Yandwiputra, Jakarta – The Indonesia Corruption Watch (ICW) detected several violations in the Ministry of Education and Culture's procurement project for 330,000 smart TVs for schools at all educational levels.
ICW researcher Nina Rizkiah Zonzoa stated that the project used a direct procurement mechanism. She mentioned that this method potentially violates the provisions of Presidential Regulation No. 46 of 2025 regarding Government Goods and Services Procurement, Article 38, paragraph 3, letter (a).
"The regulation stipulates that direct appointments should not exceed the value of Rp200,000,000," Nina said in her official statement on Friday, October 3, 2025.
The company selected through direct appointment was Hisense, an electronics company from China, which budgeted a price of Rp26 million per unit. "This price is problematic because the Ministry does not have its own estimated price," Nina said.
Nina emphasized that the Estimated Budget Plan (HPS) document should have been made public. Without transparency, the public will never know whether the determined contract value complies with market standards or potentially involves price inflation.
Based on ICW's monitoring results, the total budget for Smart TV procurement reached Rp8.3 trillion, with direct appointment providers reaching Rp7.9 trillion. Additionally, a direct procurement amounting to Rp396 billion was discovered.
In the Public Procurement General Plan System (SIRUP) of the Goods/Services Procurement Policy Agency (LKPP), there are 8 procurement packages related to digital learning. These mechanisms include direct appointment, e-purchasing, and direct procurement.
According to Nina, the planning data in SIRUP LKPP also exceeds the budget available in the Ministry of Education and Culture's Spending Plan (DIPA). The budget in DIPA is Rp452,313,350,995, while the total procurement amounts to Rp8,307,447,670,000.
"So, the difference is Rp7,855,134,319,005. The fundamental question is, which budget will the Ministry of Education and Culture use to cover this difference?" Nina said.
Nina assessed that the budget difference indicates inconsistency between SIRUP and DIPA. Budgets that should have been used for character education reinforcement or basic facility fulfillment are instead diverted to large-scale projects whose benefits are still in question.
Previously, the Government Goods/Services Procurement Policy Agency (LKPP) stated that this non-tendered procurement of goods is in accordance with regulations, considering the Smart TV program was a direct request from the President.
However, Deputy of Legal Affairs and Dispute Resolution at LKPP, Setya Budi Arijanta, explained that to obtain competitive prices, they did not make direct appointments to a single company but used a competitive appointment method.
Through this method, LKPP first approached major companies deemed capable of fulfilling the program. Then, they invited major companies with a domestic content level (TKDN) of at least 25 percent to submit bids.
He mentioned that at that time, eight major companies were invited to submit offers. However, only two companies, Acer and Hisense, presented prices. Both digital companies offered prices in the range of Rp40 million per unit.
During the negotiation process, Acer chose to withdraw because they were unwilling to lower the price. Meanwhile, the government and Hisense agreed on a price of Rp26 million per unit. "This already includes shipping costs, insurance, and warranty," Setya said on Friday, September 12, 2025.
– Dede Leni Mardianti contributed to the writing of this article
Source: https://en.tempo.co/read/2054189/icw-warns-smart-tv-procurement-could-harm-indonesias-finance