Indonesian celebrity with ‘questionable’ degree raises eyebrows with Chamber of Commerce and Industry role

JAKARTA: An Indonesian celebrity with a “questionable” university degree is under online scrutiny in Indonesia over his new role. 

Mr Raffi Ahmad has been appointed as the deputy chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADIN) from 2024 until 2029. 

This follows a spate of controversy surrounding the 37-year-old actor, presenter and entrepreneur’s recent honorary doctorate from a Bangkok-based institute.

The appointment was announced at an event held at KADIN Tower in Jakarta on Oct 7 by Chairman of KADIN Anindya Bakrie, who highlighted Mr Raffi’s public profile. 

“Raffi has over 76 million followers (on Instagram),” said Mr Anindya when announcing his appointment. 

As KADIN deputy chairman, Mr Raffi will be working closely with the department of Tourism and Creative Economy (Baparekraf), a sector in which he sees a lot of potential, according to local news platform Kompas.com.

The entrepreneur with business ventures in the entertainment, culinary and property industries among other fields, looks forward to working with the government in fulfilling his new role at KADIN.

“We are in synergy (to improve the nation’s economy), KADIN will always work closely with the government,” he said, as quoted by local news agency Antara.

He added that he was optimistic that relations between the association and the government will become even closer after the inauguration of President-elect Prabowo Subianto as well as Vice President-elect Gibran Rakabuming Raka on Oct 20. Mr Gibran is the eldest son of president Joko Widodo.

Mr Raffi has repeatedly declared his support for the Prabowo-Gibran duo on his social media platforms.

During the presidential election campaign this year, Mr Prabowo even referred to Mr Raffi as a “close friend”, while Mr Raffi was often seen accompanying the president-elect at rallies and events.  

Some netizens took to social media, questioning the credibility of his appointment. 

“After receiving his honorary doctorate from a questionable university, now he is appointed as deputy chairman, it is obvious that he is favoured by the Baparekraf. Be prepared. After the entertainment world, the tourism industry will also be dominated by RANS if he becomes the head,” said an X user on Oct 7.

RANS Entertainment is a media and entertainment company, founded by Mr Raffi and his wife, Ms Nagita Slavina in 2015. 

ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS CONTROVERSY

Last week, Mr Raffi came under fire over an honorary doctorate degree he received from the Universal Institute of Professional Management (UIPM) in Thailand for his contributions to the Indonesian entertainment industry.

Some netizens questioned the achievement, arguing that honorary doctorates are usually awarded to individuals who have made notable contributions to academic research.

Until today, Mr Raffi has never written a scientific or academic paper in any field, reported Kompas.com. 

Several netizens began to dig deeper into the UIPM campus in Thailand.

An Indonesian citizen who lives in Bangkok, Niar Ibrahim Rose, revealed on her X account that she even went to trace the location. 

According to its official website UIPM-World.org, the campus is located at Vibhavadi Rangsit 64 Yeak 3 Alley, Takat Bang Khen, Lak Si, Bangkok.

She discovered, however, that the location turned out to be a hotel, not an academic campus. 

“As a citizen of +62 (Indonesia) who lives in Bangkok, I am curious about the university that gave Raffi Ahmad his honorary doctorate … When I arrived at Vibhavadi Rangsit 64 Yeak 3 Alley, it turned out to be a hotel.

"I asked the receptionist for the correct address stated on the UIPM website. It turns out it’s not a campus,” said the PhD candidate from Chulalongkorn University on Sep 29. 

The Ministry of Education, Culture, Research, and Technology also came out to say it does not recognise the validity of degrees issued by UIPM Indonesia.

On Oct 4, Director General of Higher Education, Research and Technology Professor Abdul Haris said in a statement that the degrees issued are invalid because UIPM does not have an operational permit to provide higher education in Indonesia. 

FAKE DEGREES IN INDONESIA 

Between January and March 2023, the Ministry of Education shut down over 17 higher education institutions for selling fake degrees, as reported by local media.

This was done to preserve the quality of Indonesian education in the country, while ensuring that graduates are equipped with high levels of competency and productivity when joining the workforce. 

In May this year, a civil servant from North Sumatra was found to have used a bogus degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Sumatra Utara in Medan to apply for a job in the public works and spatial planning sector. 

Seven years into the job, it was discovered that the university never issued her the degree. 

And in 2020, a comedian turned university rector at University of Muhadi Setiabudi, Nurul Qomar was sentenced to one year and 5 months in prison after being found to have used fake master diplomas to qualify for his position, as reported by Detiknews.