Jakarta. Alleged corruption in Indonesia's flagship free nutritious meals program caused approximately Rp 10 trillion ($556.6 million) in state losses, prosecutors said Tuesday, as six defendants, including former National Nutrition Agency (BGN) chief Dadan Hindayana, moved closer to trial.

Attorney General's Office spokesman Anang Supriatna said the estimated losses were calculated by the Financial and Development Supervisory Agency (BPKP).

“Approximately Rp 10 trillion,” Anang said when asked about the amount.

The six suspects whose cases have been transferred to prosecutors are Dadan; former National Nutrition Agency (BGN) deputy chiefs Sony Sonjaya and Lodewyk Pusung; BGN official Lalu Muhammad Iwan Mahardan; and private-sector suspects Glory Harimas Sihombing and Asep Yusuf Somantri.

Their case files have been declared complete, and the suspects and evidence were handed over Tuesday to the Central Jakarta District Prosecutor's Office for prosecution.

“The prosecution team has declared the suspects' case files complete,” Anang said.

Investigators questioned approximately 233 witnesses and four experts during the investigation, in addition to collecting documents and other evidence.

Prosecutors allege irregularities in the management of the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program in 2025 and 2026, including the selection of organizations to operate meal kitchens and the procurement of goods and services.

Some foundations allegedly affiliated with senior BGN officials were approved to operate Nutrition Fulfillment Service Units, or SPPGs, despite allegedly failing to meet requirements.

Prosecutors have also alleged irregularities involving the allocation and sale of SPPG locations and procurement at prices above their proper value.

Army Colonel Becomes Eighth Suspect
The Attorney General's Office also disclosed Tuesday that active-duty Army Col. Budi Utomo had been named a suspect in the same broader investigation.

Budi, a former BGN deputy secretary for provision and distribution, had actually been designated a suspect in August and is being held by the Jakarta Military Police.

His case is being handled separately by the Office of the Deputy Attorney General for Military Crimes because of his status as an active-duty military officer.

Budi previously held a position involving procurement at BGN and has been linked by investigators to the agency's controversial procurement of thousands of electric motorcycles.

His addition brings the number of suspects in the broader MBG corruption investigation to eight.

The other suspect, Andri Mulyono, is a commissioner of PT Yasa Artha Trimanunggal, a company involved in supplying electric motorcycles to BGN.

Flagship Program Hit by Controversies
The corruption investigation represents one of the most serious challenges yet for the Free Nutritious Meals program, one of President Prabowo Subianto's signature initiatives.

Launched nationwide in January 2025, the program provides meals to schoolchildren and other eligible beneficiaries, including pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers and young children.

The program has expanded rapidly and commands a budget of more than Rp 200 trillion.

Its rapid rollout, however, has been accompanied by repeated food-safety incidents, allegations of irregularities in the allocation of SPPG kitchen locations and scrutiny over large-scale procurement.

Independent monitoring groups have reported tens of thousands of suspected food-poisoning cases associated with meals distributed under the program. 

In July, the Constitutional Court also ruled that spending on the MBG program must be separated from Indonesia's constitutionally mandated education budget in future state budgets.

The court allowed the existing arrangement to continue temporarily but ordered the government to separate MBG funding from the education allocation no later than the 2028 state budget.

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