Corrupt? I was just ‘hitchhiking’ on a friend’s private jet, Widodo’s son says

Kaesang Pangarep visited the office of Indonesia’s anti-corruption agency to reject allegations of wrongdoing over his use of the jet

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Kaesang Pangarep, the youngest son of Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo, answers questions while leaving the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) building in Jakarta on Tuesday. Photo: AFP

Published: 10:26am, 18 Sep 2024Updated: 12:04pm, 18 Sep 2024

Kaesang Pangarep, the youngest son of President Joko Widodo, has pushed back against an allegation of wrongdoing over the use of a private jet on a recent overseas trip.

Kaesang visited the office of Indonesia’s anti-corruption agency known as KPK on Tuesday to clarify that he had initially planned to take a commercial flight to the US in August, but had decided to “hitchhike” with a friend.

“My trip to the US was on my friend’s [private jet],” Kaesang said in a statement. He did not provide further details about the identity of the aircraft’s owner.

The budding politician travelled with his wife last month as fierce rallies broke out in Indonesia, successfully halting proposed election law changes that would have allowed Kaesang to join a gubernatorial race.

KPK said in a statement that it would continue to analyse Kaesang’s report over the next 30 days then decide the next steps. Jokowi’s youngest son was reported to the KPK through a public complaint channel by Boyamin Saiman of the Indonesian Anti-Corruption Society.

Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo, his wife Iriana and son Kaesang Pangarep arrive for a royal banquet in Brunei in 2017. Photo: Reuters

The KPK had summoned Kaesang in late August over his use of a private jet, only to cancel the order after a few days, according to a local media report saying that a similar examination was already ongoing in another division of the agency.