Indonesia Fires and Arrests Ex-Nutrition Chief Over Alleged Corruption in School Meals Programme

Indonesia arrested Dadan Hindayana, former head of the National Nutrition Agency, on June 3 2026 on charges of causing state losses and enriching himself. Investigators raided the agency's Jakarta offices the same day and barred staff from entering. He was seen being led away in handcuffs from the Attorney General's Office building.

Two other former officials were arrested on identical charges. If convicted, Dadan Hindayana faces a maximum 20-year prison sentence. Prosecutors said the full extent of state losses is still being calculated.

President Prabowo Subianto fired Dadan Hindayana on June 2 2026 over food quality and governance concerns. Indonesia's anti-graft watchdog had filed a complaint one week earlier alleging budgeting discrepancies of nearly $50 million in the programme's halal certification procurement.

Dadan Hindayana was replaced by his deputy, Nanik Sudaryati Deyang, a former journalist and member of President Prabowo's 2024 presidential campaign team.

Local media reported that Dadan Hindayana was accused of influencing the selection of foundations managing programme kitchens despite unmet standards and of owning those foundations through external parties. He was also allegedly involved in the marked-up procurement of more than 21,000 electric motorbikes, 32,000 pairs of shoes and 5,400 televisions.

The programme launched in January 2025 with the goal of providing daily meals to 80 million school children.

As of April 2026, the Network for Education Watch had linked at least 33,000 food poisoning cases to the programme. The scheme was scaled back from six days a week to five days a week to manage costs amid dwindling trade surpluses, a weak currency and economic pressures from the US-Iran war. Almost all of the programme's initial funding came from cuts to Indonesia's education and health sectors.

More than 20 per cent of Indonesian children are affected by stunting caused by severe malnutrition. "Some issues relate to discipline in following standard operating procedures, while others relate to discipline in implementing governance, including discipline in maintaining food quality," Prasetyo Hadi, minister of state secretariat, told reporters after the firing.

He added that services to the public would not be disrupted.

President Prabowo Subianto said he had heard of violations at the agency but did not want to comment further to avoid interfering with the legal process. " @Independent reported the arrests and the sequence of events leading to them.