TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A figure wearing an orange vest with the letters 'KPK' on the left chest and a sticker with the crossed-out phrase 'Don't Dream of Wearing This Vest' is displayed in the lobby of the Ministry of Manpower office.
The mannequin is deliberately exhibited in the office on the orders of Minister of Manpower Yassierli, a stark warning to his staff to avoid engaging in corrupt behaviors.
"Friends, if you see here, there is a statue of a person wearing an orange vest. I always caution (my staff)," said Yassierli in Jakarta on Thursday, August 21, 2025, as quoted by Antara.
The Ministry of Manpower has been put under the spotlight after a raid by the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) over alleged corruption linked to permits for foreign workers. During the sting operation on Thursday, August 21, 2025, Deputy Minister of Manpower Immanuel Ebenezer was arrested. He was implicated in a corruption case related to Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) certification.
That's why, Minister Yassierli moved to display the KPK vest mannequin in the lobby of his office, in front of the receptionist's desk.
It appears that Minister Yassierli is fed up with his subordinates becoming 'regulars' at KPK.
Yesterday's raid was not the first sting operation KPK launched at Ministry of Manpower officials. In 2011, the anti-graft agency unveiled a bribery case related to the disbursement of funds for the accelerated development of regional infrastructure.
This case was revealed after KPK conducted a sting operation against two Ministry officials, namely the Secretary of the Directorate General for the Development of Transmigration Areas, I Nyoman Suisnaya, and the Head of the Planning and Evaluation Section of the Ministry of Manpower and Transmigration, Dadong Irbarelawan.
Both officials were caught with an entrepreneur named Dharmawati who allegedly gave a bribe of Rp1.5 billion in a durian cardboard box. This case became known as the "durian cardboard" case.
KPK arrested Deputy Minister of Manpower Immanuel Ebenezer in a sting operation on Thursday, August 21, 2025, over alleged extortion of occupational safety and health (OSH) certification processing.
KPK Deputy Chair Fitroh Rohcahyanto confirmed the arrest, adding that the operation also resulted in the arrest of 10 other individuals.
KPK had 24 hours to determine the status of those arrested. Fitroh said the alleged extortion was carried out by Noel, the deputy minister, against several companies.
After the arrest, Deputy Minister Immanuel Ebenezer was taken to the Red and White Building of KPK in Jakarta.
Fitroh said the sting operation against Immanuel Ebenezer had been ongoing since Wednesday night, August 20, 2025.
KPK had seized 22 vehicles by Thursday afternoon. "Until now, the evidence seized consists of 15 four-wheeled vehicles and seven two-wheeled vehicles," said the KPK spokesperson Budi Prasetyo.
However, Budi stopped short of disclosing the ownership or location of the seized vehicles.
Based on a report from Antara, the 22 vehicles consist of a Nissan GT-R, Toyota Corolla Cross, two Hyundai Palisades, Suzuki Jimny, three Honda CRVs, a Jeep, a Toyota Hilux, two Mitsubishi Expanders, a Hyundai Stargazer, a BMW, a Mitsubishi Pajero Sport, a Vespa Sprint S 150, a Scrambler Ducati, a Ducati Hypermotard, and a Ducati Xdiavel.
Previously, on July 17, 2025, KPK arrested four suspects, who were officials of echelons I and II, the Director General of Labor Placement and Job Opportunity Expansion (Binapenta and PKK) for the 2020-2023 period, Suhartono; the Director of Foreign Labor Utilization Control for the 2019-2024 period, Haryanto, who later served as the Director of Binapenta and PKK for the 2024-2025 period; the Director of the Distribution and Utilization of Foreign Workers for the 2017-2019 period, Wisnu Pramono; and the Director of the Distribution and Utilization of Foreign Workers for the 2024-2025 period, Devi Angraeni.
On July 24, KPK arrested four more suspects, namely the Coordinator of Analysis and Control of Foreign Labor Utilization (PPTKA), Gatot Widiartono; the Emergency Channel Officer for RPTKA for the 2019-2024 period and verifier of RPTKA validation at the Directorate of PPTKA for the 2024-2025 period, Putri Citra Wahyoe; the Administrative Analyst at the Directorate of PPTKA for the 2019-2024 period and First Expert Worker Introduction at the Directorate of PPTKA for the 2024-2025 period, Jamal Shodiqin; and the Junior Expert Worker at the Ministry of Manpower for the 2018-2025 period, Alfa Eshad.
They were involved in a case of alleged extortion of parties handling permits for foreign workers, with over Rp58 billion collected. Interestingly, the extortion money was enjoyed by 85 other employees.
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