Tom Lembong
Tom Lembong | |
|---|---|
汪连旺 | |
.jpg) Tom Lembong in 2016 | |
| Head of Investment Coordinating Board | |
| In office 27 July 2016 – 23 October 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Franky Sibarani |
| Succeeded by | Bahlil Lahadalia |
| 30th Minister of Trade | |
| In office 12 August 2015 – 27 July 2016 | |
| President | Joko Widodo |
| Preceded by | Rachmad Gobel |
| Succeeded by | Enggartiasto Lukita |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 4 March 1971 Jakarta, Indonesia |
| Political party | Independent |
| Alma mater | Harvard University (AB) |
| Tom Lembong | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Traditional Chinese | 汪連旺[1] | ||||||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 汪连旺 | ||||||||||
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Thomas Trikasih Lembong (born 4 March 1971), colloquially known as Tom Lembong, is an Indonesian politician. Since 27 July 2016, he has been Head of Indonesia's Investment Coordinating Board (Badan Koordinasi Penanaman Modal). He formerly served as Minister of Trade of Indonesia from 12 August 2015 to 27 July 2016.[2][3]
On 29 October 2024, the Attorney General's Office named Tom Lembong as a suspect in the sugar import corruption case.[4][5]
Finance career
Main positions held by Thomas Lembong before becoming Head of the Investment Coordinating Board include the following:
- 1995: Staff member in the Equities Division in Morgan Stanley (Singapore).
- Senior Manager in the Corporate Finance Department of Makindo Securities, an investment bank in Jakarta.
- Investment banker with Deutsche Securities in Jakarta.
- 2002–2005: Division Head, and Senior Vice President, Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency in Jakarta.
- 2006: Founding member and managing partner and CEO, Quvat Management, a private equity fund established in 2006, also working with Principia Management Group, Jakarta.
- 2008: elected as a Young Global Leader at the World Economic Forum.
- 2012: President Commissioner, PT Graha Layar Prima Tbk, an Indonesia-based cinema operator.
Minister of Trade
On 12 August 2015, President Joko Widodo ("Jokowi") appointed Thomas Lembong as Minister for Trade in the first cabinet reshuffle since the Jokowi administration had taken office on 27 October 2014.[6] Thomas Lembong held the position until he was appointed as Head, Investment Coordinating Board, in July 2016.[7] On taking over as Head of the Investment Coordinating Board, he described President Jokowi's economic reform philosophy as having two principles: openness and competition.
He emphasized that following the cabinet reshuffle and the appointment of Enggartiasto Lukita as the next Trade Minister, he expected that there would be policy continuity in trade and investment policy in Indonesia.[8]
Sugar Import Case
On October 29, 2024 Tom Lembong was named as a suspect in the sugar import corruption case. The decision to bring Tom to trial was nearly 10 years after his alleged offense.[9] The alleged offense was based on deals conducted in 2015 when Tom Lembong was Minister of Trade in the Joko Widodo administration.[9]
On July 18th 2025, Tom Lembong, was pronounced guilty of corruption in the sugar importation case and sentenced to four years and six months in prison. He was also awarded a fine of approximately $46,000 , with a subsidiary penalty of six months’ imprisonment if the fine is not paid.[10] The panel of judges ruled that he did not personally gain from the corruption; and he behaved politely and did not obstruct court proceedings.[10]
While Lembong and his legal team were preparing to appeal the verdict, the current president Prabowo Subianto made a request with the House of Representatives for an abolition for Tom Lembong, using presidential power to throw a defendants case out of court and abolish the prosecution against them.[11] The request was granted, allowing Lembong to walk free out of the Salemba Detention Centre in Jakarta on August 1st, 2025.
References
- ^ "咱唱反调:汪部长言过其实 印尼投资环境鬼见愁" [Let’s play devil’s advocate: Minister Wang’s exaggeration makes Indonesia’s investment environment very worrying-]. guiwan.iotasilane.com. October 20, 2019. Retrieved February 13, 2024.
- ^ Rachmadea Aisyah (December 14, 2018). "Pegatron investment in Batam not yet confirmed: BKPM". The Jakarta Post. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
- ^ "Money Matters". The Business Year. August 8, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
- ^ Naibaho, Rumondang. "Kejagung Tetapkan Tom Lembong Tersangka Korupsi Impor Gula". detiknews (in Indonesian). Retrieved October 29, 2024.
- ^ "Tom Lembong Ditetapkan Tersangka, Disidik sejak Oktober 2023". Kompas.id (in Indonesian). October 29, 2024. Retrieved October 29, 2024.
- ^ Arlina Arshad (February 15, 2016). "Humble, pragmatic minister who bears similarities to Jokowi". The Straits Times. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
- ^ "Former Trade Minister: Indonesia Is Seeing Recovery". Bloomberg. September 20, 2016. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
- ^ Thomas Lembong, 'Insight: President Jokowi's trade policy: Onwards and upwards', The Jakarta Post, 10 August 2016.
- ^ a b "Former Indonesian minister arrested in sugar corruption probe; state allegedly lost over US$25 million". CNA. Retrieved August 6, 2025.
- ^ a b antaranews.com (July 19, 2025). "Ex-minister gets 4.5 years in prison for sugar import graft". Antara News. Retrieved August 7, 2025.
- ^ "Prabowo's landmark pardon of 2 rivals for graft 'purely political', but casts doubt on corruption fight". CNA. Retrieved August 7, 2025.