Is there anything more barbaric than stealing funds intended to deal with disasters? Especially when the perpetrators are senior officials at an institution called the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB). It is truly unthinkable that this crime keeps recurring soon after disasters strike.
On Tuesday night, October 13, 2026, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) raided the agency's offices. Investigators arrested at least 14 civil servants and businesspeople. Five of them have been named suspects in an alleged bribery and conflict-of-interest case involving the management of BNPB's ready-to-use funds for the 2024-2026 fiscal years.
The KPK should expand its investigation into this case. The funds allegedly misappropriated by the suspects amounted to Rp148 billion. Collusion is also suspected to have been going on for a long time and occurring repeatedly. It is truly unthinkable that this corruption involved only three state officials at the level of expert advisors and a subdirectorate head, who served as commitment-making official in the procurement projects allegedly tainted by corruption.
The sharpest scrutiny naturally falls on Suharyanto, the Chief of BNPB, who was removed from his post a day after the case came to light. One of the suspects is Bima Setiawan, an expert advisor to the BNPB Chief and, in fact, his younger brother. The appointment of a relative to an official position at an institution he leads raises questions in itself.
To ensure a transparent investigation, the Corruption Eradication Commission must investigate Suharyanto's alleged involvement rather than hand the case over to the Military Police. Suharyanto is an active senior military officer with the rank of lieutenant general. However, Constitutional Court Decision No. 87/PUU-XXI/2023 affirms that the KPK has the authority to handle corruption offenses involving both civilian and military perpetrators, provided the investigation was initiated and handled by the anti-graft commission from the outset.
A thorough investigation is crucial to restoring the humanitarian values trampled by the perpetrators. BNPB's ready-to-use funds were supposed to be allocated to respond to flash floods and landslides in Sumatra, earthquakes in East Nusa Tenggara, and forest and land fires. The embezzlement of these funds has deprived disaster victims of their right to regain a decent standard of living.
At least 1,247 people died, 114 remain missing, and more than 145,000 others were forced to evacuate as a result of disasters in Sumatra and East Nusa Tenggara. Many survivors in the affected areas continue to suffer. Chaotic fiscal and disaster response policies had already hindered efforts to restore their right to adequate housing and public service infrastructure.
Before those problems could even be addressed, forest and land fires began spreading across nearly all parts of Indonesia. As of October 13, 2026, the Health Ministry had recorded more than 283,000 cases of acute respiratory infections in 68 fire-affected regencies and cities. One in every four patients affected by the fire haze was a child under five.
Ironically, this is not the first crime of its kind. Five years ago, social assistance funds for the Covid-19 pandemic response were also misappropriated. The barbarity of these plunderers of disaster funds is truly unforgivable.
– Read the complete story in Tempo English Magazine
Source: https://en.tempo.co/read/2122012/the-plunderers-of-disaster-fund