TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Before a group of reporters invited to a fast-breaking gathering, Sudarto admitted that he had been slow in handling an Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP) scholarship recipient suspected of violating the rules. The acting Chief Executive Officer of LPDP said the agency had monitored the academic track record of Arya Iwantoro, one of its awardees, before his case exploded on social media.
Arya is the husband of Dwi Sasetyaningtyas, also an LPDP scholarship alumna. The couple went viral after Dwi posted on social media about her child’s citizenship status. Her post sparked controversy and soon extended to Arya’s scholarship record. Arya was suspected of failing to fulfill his mandatory service in Indonesia after completing his studies abroad, as stipulated in the scholarship agreement.
According to Sudarto, Arya’s service status had already been on LPDP’s radar, but the institution did not immediately take action. “We will accelerate the process with this momentum,” Sudarto said at the Finance Ministry complex in Central Jakarta on Wednesday evening, February 25, 2026.
Two days earlier, on Monday, February 23, 2026, Sudarto and his team invited Arya to a discussion via video teleconference. During the clarification session, LPDP discussed the option of Arya repaying the scholarship funds for his master’s and doctoral studies. Sudarto estimated overseas tuition costs at around Rp1 billion (about US$60,000) for a master’s degree and Rp2 billion (US$120,000) for a doctorate.
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