Fact Check: Did Ahok Tie KPK Bid to Death Penalty?

September 7, 2026 | 05:53 am

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A poster featuring former Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama, also known as Ahok, circulated on Facebook and Instagram [archived] on August 28, 2026. The poster claimed that Ahok was willing to serve as Chairman of the Indonesian Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) on the condition that a law imposing the death penalty on corruptors be enacted.

The poster displayed the text: "I am ready to become KPK Chairman, but the condition is the enactment of the Bill on the Death Penalty for Corruptors; if it is merely asset forfeiture, corruptors could simply place their assets in other people's names."

Did Ahok ever state that he was willing to become KPK Chairman provided the death penalty for corruptors was enacted?

FACT CHECK

Tempo verified the circulating narrative using Google keyword searches, reverse image searches, and information from credible sources. The findings indicate that Basuki Tjahaja Purnama (Ahok) never stated he was willing to become KPK Chairman on the condition that the death penalty for corruptors be enacted.

When contacted by Tempo's Fact-Check team on September 1, 2026, Ahok denied ever making a statement expressing willingness to become KPK Chairman or linking such a role to the death penalty for corruptors.

"I did not create that, and I never claimed I would become KPK Chairman. That is a hoax," Ahok said via WhatsApp.

In various interviews and podcasts since 2013, Ahok has repeatedly rejected the implementation of the death penalty on humanitarian grounds. Citing Detik, Ahok emphasized that he preferred the forfeiture of corruptors' assets over the death penalty.

He reiterated his opposition to the death penalty via the Merdeka.com YouTube channel on July 26, 2024. "It is far more wicked for someone to commit corruption and yet emerge still wealthy. Impoverishment [of the corruptor] is what needs to be done," Ahok said.

In a podcast with comedian Bintang Emon, Ahok discussed the Asset Forfeiture Bill. He assessed that the proposed regulation had the potential to be misused to target the assets of ordinary citizens rather than those of officials. He advocates more strongly for the effective implementation of existing regulations—such as the Law on the Eradication of Corruption and the Law on Money Laundering—to seize the assets of convicted corruptors.

“The UN convention ratification is clear; what is actually needed is the reversal of the burden of proof regarding officials' assets,” said Ahok on Bintang Emon’s YouTube channel on January 16, 2026.

Irrelevant Image

The image used in the content is irrelevant to the narrative. The content merely displays a portrait of Ahok sourced from the website Beritajakarta.id.

Meanwhile, the photo of former Deputy Minister of Manpower Immanuel Ebenezer Gerungan was taken from Antara. It shows Immanuel on his way to a press conference regarding an alleged extortion case involving the processing of occupational health and safety certificates at the KPK's Merah Putih Building on August 22, 2025.

CONCLUSION

The claim that Ahok is willing to serve as KPK Chairman provided that the death penalty is imposed on corruptors is false.

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