Prabowo slams corrupt Indonesian officials, warns foreign NGOs

Straits Times

2 days ago

Mr Prabowo has also portrayed himself as tough on graft, a long-standing problem in South-east Asia's largest economy. PHOTO: AFP
JAKARTA – Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto used a national holiday address to deliver a sharp warning to the country's political elite, urging underperforming public officials to step down or face removal.
The president, speaking on June 2 Monday at a state ceremony to commemorate Indonesia's founding state ideology, Pancasila, blamed many of the country's struggles on self-serving leaders and others that fail to act in the nation's interest.
'One of our biggest weaknesses is the mentality of the national elite,' Mr Prabowo said in a fiery, half-hour speech in front of several hundred military personnel, police and Cabinet members in Jakarta.
'There are still too many abuses, too much corruption, too much manipulation – and it's happening inside the government.'
Any official unable to fulfil their duties, he added, should 'step down before I remove them.'
He did not name specific targets or agencies in his remarks.
The speech marks one of Mr Prabowo's strongest public criticisms of Indonesia's bureaucracy since taking office in October.
The president, a member of Indonesia's upper classes who married into the family of former dictator Suharto, has relied heavily on a familiar rhetorical theme: that a corrupt and ineffective elite is weakening national unity and squandering the country's vast resources.
Less than a year into his term, Mr Prabowo has positioned himself as a populist leader seeking to lift living standards across an archipelago of more than 280 million people.
His administration is rolling out free meals for many students across the country, and last week unveiled plans to lower transport and power costs as part of efforts to boost consumer spending.
His big-spending programme and sharp policy shifts raised concerns among investors earlier in 2025, though sentiment has since stabilised.
Mr Prabowo has also portrayed himself as tough on graft, a long-standing problem in South-east Asia's largest economy.
Indonesia ranked 99 out of 180 countries in Transparency International's 2024 Corruption Perceptions Index, and public confidence in oversight institutions is relatively low.
The president also warned of foreign interference, another familiar refrain, accusing unnamed international actors of funding civil society groups to divide Indonesia under the guise of promoting democracy and human rights.
'They've been doing this for decades,' he said. 'With their money, they fund NGOs that pit us against one another. We must not be manipulated by any nation.'
Mr Prabowo delivered his speech at the Pancasila Building in central Jakarta – the same site where the country's founding president, Sukarno, first laid out what he envisioned as a unifying ideology for Indonesia's diverse population in June 1945.
Just over two months later, Indonesia declared independence from Dutch colonial rule.
Among those in attendance on June 2 was Sukarno's daughter, former president Megawati Soekarnoputri, leader of the main opposition party.
It was the first time the two appeared together in public since Mr Prabowo's election victory, though they had a closed-door meeting in April 2025. BLOOMBERG
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.