Former nutrition agency head arrested in Indonesia
AP News • • world
Key Points:
- Indonesia’s former head of the National Nutrition Agency, Dadan Hindayana, was arrested on corruption charges linked to a costly free-meals program aimed at feeding nearly 90 million children and pregnant women.
- The free-meals program, a key campaign promise of President Prabowo Subianto, has faced criticism over high costs and incidents of food poisoning among schoolchildren.
- Alongside Hindayana, two other agency officials, Sony Sonjaya and Lodewyk Pusung, were also arrested for allegedly manipulating the partner verification system to approve ineligible foundations involved in the program.
- Investigators claim these foundations received billions of rupiah daily in incentives, and the total financial damage to the state is still being assessed.
- Despite the arrests and dismissals, the government affirmed its commitment to continuing the $28 billion program through 2029 to combat malnutrition and support farmers.