JAKARTA: Indonesian officials on Wednesday arrested the former head of the country’s free school meals program, blighted by mass food poisonings and corruption claims, a day after he was fired.
The much-hyped billion-dollar feeding scheme was the flagship policy of President Prabowo Subianto’s 2024 election campaign. Prabowo fired Dadan Hindayana, an entomologist who had led the National Nutrition Agency since its inception in August 2024, along with two deputies on Tuesday. All three were taken into custody in Jakarta on Wednesday.
They stand accused of “crimes in the management” of the program, Syarief Sulaeman Nahdi of the attorney general’s office told reporters.
Authorities earlier raided the nutrition agency’s office as well as the homes of the three defendants, Syarief said.
The government says the program has provided meals to more than 61 million people by March, but tens of thousands of people have fallen ill since it was rolled out in January last year.
Critics have called for the scheme to be suspended over hygiene concerns and accusations of corruption.
Last month, anti-graft watchdog Indonesia Corruption Watch filed a complaint against Dadan citing alleged budget irregularities.
Syarief said on Wednesday that foundations appointed by the three defendants to oversee kitchens were allegedly “used as vehicles for crimes.”
