Jakarta. A man who was left nearly blind after an acid attack has been asked to return Rp 1.5 billion ($96,362) in donations collected on his behalf by a social media influencer, following allegations of misuse.

Agus Salim suffered severe facial burns that damaged both of his eyes after a teenager threw acid at him during an argument in Cengkareng, West Jakarta, earlier this month.

YouTube personality Pratiwi Noviyanthi helped raise donations to fund Agus's treatment and restore his vision. However, a petition on Change.org, posted on Saturday, called for Agus to return the money, alleging that it was not used for his medical care.

“This petition was created due to growing disappointment among donors who contributed money to Agus Salim, the victim of an acid attack. Donors believe the funds were not used appropriately,” the petition stated.

In a YouTube post on Tuesday, Pratiwi claimed that Agus had not used the donated funds for medical purposes.

“His doctor visits were covered by [the state insurance scheme] BPJS, despite having received over a billion rupiah in donations,” Pratiwi said.

She added that her foundation played a role in raising the funds and that the money was intended for serious medical treatment to restore Agus's vision. Pratiwi called for greater transparency in how the donations were being used. 

It remains unclear if she was involved in initiating the petition demanding the return of the funds.

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