Jember, Jawa Timur (ANTARA) - Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Bima Arya Sugiarto emphasized the need to evaluate political recruitment to curb the high incidence of corruption among regional heads in Indonesia.“We are running out of words regarding the number of regional heads committing criminal acts of corruption because all regional heads have already been warned and have undergone retreats as well,” he said after a book discussion on Babad Alas at the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, Universitas Jember, East Java, on Friday.

He noted that preventive measures and anti-corruption instruments are already in place, yet many regional heads remain involved in corrupt practices.

“For this reason, a fundamental evaluation of political recruitment is needed, including the mechanisms for electing regional heads and the regional election system (pilkada), because so far, mere advisories are not enough,” he added.

Bima highlighted the importance of advancing government digitalization so that all transactions are conducted cashlessly, as digital transactions reduce opportunities for corruption.

“To reduce the high rate of corruption by regional heads, bureaucracy alone is insufficient; political system reforms for regional head elections are also necessary,” he said.

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He further stressed that a combination of bureaucratic reform and political recruitment evaluation is essential to reduce the number of regional heads involved in corruption in Indonesia.

Bima previously noted that as many as 500 regional heads have been implicated in corruption cases since the introduction of direct local elections in 2005.

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The Deputy Minister expressed regret over corruption cases involving several regional heads.

Recently, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) conducted simultaneous sting operations on January 19, 2026, targeting two regional heads:

  • Maidi, Mayor of Madiun, allegedly involved in extortion, gratification, and receiving project and CSR fees totaling IDR 2.25 billion.

  • Sudewo, Pati District Head, allegedly involved in extortion related to filling village government positions and bribery in railway construction and maintenance projects under the Directorate General of Railways (DJKA), Ministry of Transportation.