Gojek co-founder Nadiem Makarim sentenced to 10 years for corruption
Jakarta’s anti-corruption court sentenced Nadiem Makarim, co-founder of ride-hailing and delivery giant Gojek, to 10 years in prison for abuse of authority tied to a pandemic-era procurement of Chromebook laptops for schools, Al Jazeera reported . The court found the deal caused roughly $120 million in state losses and ordered Makarim, 41, to pay about $55,850 in fines and more than $45 million in restitution or face additional time.
Makarim, who built Gojek from a 20-motorcycle call center into one of Southeast Asia’s largest tech platforms, became Indonesia’s youngest cabinet minister in 2019 and served as education minister until 2024. Prosecutors alleged the laptop purchasing decision was linked to Google’s investment in Gojek.
He denied wrongdoing, called the case an “investigative error,” and said he would appeal. The conviction is among the highest-profile outcomes of Indonesia’s continuing anti-corruption prosecutions and entangles a figure long held up as a symbol of the country’s tech rise.