Indonesia Tries Ex-Minister Makarim in Chromebook Graft Case

Indonesian prosecutors opened proceedings in a graft trial against former education minister Nadiem Makarim over the procurement of Chromebooks for use in schools, alleging the project caused 2.1 trillion rupiah ($125 million) in state losses.

Prosecutors at the Central Jakarta District Court on Monday read out charges accusing Makarim of abusing his authority in the ministry’s education digitalization program, which involved Chromebooks and a device management service that they said effectively made Alphabet Inc. unit Google a gatekeeper of part of Indonesia’s education ecosystem.