JAKARTA – Reflecting on December 8, 2019, five years ago, the Ministry of Finance (Kemenkeu) refuted claims regarding Sri Mulyani’s ownership of a luxury Brompton folding bicycle. The Ministry stated that the bicycle utilized by Sri Mulyani several years prior was a borrowed item.
This came in the wake of revelations concerning the smuggling of a Harley Davidson motorcycle and a Brompton bike from France, orchestrated by the President Director of Garuda Indonesia, Ari Askhara. Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani remarked jokingly that she never expected to experience what it feels like to ride a 50 million IDR bicycle.
The Indonesian government was taken aback by the revelations of the Harley Davidson and Brompton smuggling. The act was knowingly committed by state officials, specifically Ari Askhara, the President Director of Garuda Indonesia.
The scheme involved dismantling luxury goods and packing them into 18 boxes, which were flown in on a new Garuda Indonesia Airbus A330-900 Neo.
Though the smuggling transpired smoothly in France, it did not go unnoticed in Indonesia. The Customs and Excise team at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport (Soetta) acted swiftly, detaining the 18 boxes belonging to a new VIP passenger on Garuda Indonesia.
Each box was opened one by one, revealing the Harley Davidson motorcycle and Brompton bicycle. This discovery left Minister of SOEs, Erick Thohir, and Minister of Finance Sri Mulyani in deep thought. Both scheduled a press conference at the Ministry of Finance Building on December 5, 2019.
Before the press conference, they inspected the smuggled items. Erick Thohir was intrigued by the luxury motorcycle, describing the big bike (moge) as quite expensive.
However, Sri Mulyani had a different focus. She was more captivated by the smuggled Brompton bicycles and pondered the audacity of state officials avoiding excise payments, especially given the salaries they draw. Sri also reflected on what riding a bicycle costing around 50 million IDR might feel like, smiling as she contemplated it.
“This bicycle costs Rp. 50 million, what could that experience be like?” Sri Mulyani stated, as quoted on the Kumparan website, December 5, 2019.
Her comments sparked controversy, with many labeling her as hypocritical. On December 6, 2019, netizen @IwanSumule_86 posted a photo showing Sri and her husband riding Brompton bikes.
The post was accompanied by Sri’s assertion of dishonesty. She claimed ignorance of the sensations involved, despite owning a Brompton bicycle, leading to suspicions regarding her frequent use of smuggled goods. This post stirred considerable backlash against Sri.
In response, the Ministry of Finance defended their leader on December 8, 2019, clarifying that the photos circulating were taken during a leisurely bicycle event commemorating Oeang Day of the Republic of Indonesia (HORI) in 2017.
Sri Mulyani had been riding a borrowed bicycle from the event organizers, indicating that she did not actually own the luxurious bicycle. The Ministry emphasized that Sri maintained she was unaware of what it was like to ride a Brompton bike.
“It’s understandable that the Minister of Finance feels she has never ridden the bicycle,” stated Nufransa Wira Sakti, Head of the Communication and Information Service Bureau of the Ministry of Finance, as quoted by ANTARA, December 8, 2019.
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