VILLAGE FUND CORRUPTION FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF CENTRAL SULAWESI NETIZENS: A NETNOGRAPHY STUDY ON SOCIAL MEDIA AND ONLINE FORUMS Moh. Rizky Ramadhan Putra, Muh. Faizurrahman Algifari, Nuraini Mulyadi, Jamaluddin, Ernawaty Usman, Ridwan
Universitas Tadulako
Abstract
This study aims to understand how netizens in Central Sulawesi interpret and respond to the phenomenon of village fund corruption through digital interactions on social media and online forums. Using netnography, this study explores comments, posts, and online conversations discussing the issue of village fund misuse on various digital platforms, such as Facebook, Instagram, and local community forums. Data was collected over a period of one month through online lurking by searching for keywords such as ^village fund corruption,^ ^village head arrested,^ and ^village development budget.^ The results show that digital space has become a new arena for the public to express their opinions, social criticism, and moral control over village administration. Netizens in Central Sulawesi not only express anger and cynicism towards corrupt village officials, but also develop unique forms of expression such as humor, sarcasm, and moral satire as a collective means of voicing social protest. The discourse that emerged shows that social media and online forums function as spaces for participatory social control, where the community monitors the performance of village government officials and demands transparency and accountability in the management of public funds. This study confirms that village fund corruption is a multidimensional social phenomenon, not merely a violation of the law, but also a reflection of weak oversight structures and declining public trust in local institutions. Thus, digital participation by the community has great potential to strengthen clean, open, and responsive village governance in the digital age.
Keywords: village fund corruption, netnography, digital public opinion, social media, online forums
