President Prabowo Subianto held a full cabinet session at the\nPresidential Palace in Jakarta on Friday, 13 March 2026. All members of\nthe Merah Putih Cabinet, including ministers, deputy ministers, heads of\nagencies, and presidential special advisors, attended the large\nmeeting.<\/p>\n
The session began with a presentation of a video containing\ngovernment achievements. Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya then\nopened the session with the video screening, which featured clips of\nvarious projects claimed as government accomplishments. One segment\nshowed bridge construction work across Indonesia, with footage of\nmilitary and police personnel involved in executing these projects.<\/p>\n
After the video presentation, Prabowo opened the cabinet session. He\nnoted that the full cabinet session would address preparations for Eid\nal-Fitr 1447 Hijriah. \u201cWe have now entered the 23rd day of this holy\nmonth of Ramadan, and in seven days we will celebrate Eid al-Fitr,\u201d\nPrabowo said to his ministers. Beyond Eid preparations, Prabowo\naddressed various other issues during the session.<\/p>\n
Prabowo Reveals Intelligence Reports on Government Critics<\/p>\n
President Prabowo Subianto stated that he regularly receives\nintelligence reports regarding observers critical of his administration.\nPrabowo claimed that these critics were funded by parties opposed to his\ngovernment. He said he receives intelligence briefings daily since\nbecoming president. \u201cWhen I was outside government, now I am the\npresident. So I receive intelligence reports every day,\u201d he said during\nthe Merah Putih Cabinet meeting at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on\nFriday, 13 March 2026.<\/p>\n
Based on the intelligence information, Prabowo claimed to know who\nfunds the government\u2019s critics. \u201cSo I understand, I already know who\nfinances them,\u201d said the Gerindra Party chairman. According to Prabowo,\nhe is currently attempting to address the parties funding these\nobservers through persuasive means and by convincing them of his\ngovernment\u2019s legitimacy.<\/p>\n
Prabowo expressed bewilderment at observers who constantly malign the\ngovernment. \u201cSo in my view, some observers are motivated to cause public\nanxiety. I also do not understand their thinking because we are one\nnation,\u201d he said. Prabowo likened Indonesia to one large ship. If the\nship tilts, all its passengers are affected. He argued that all parties\nshould unite and be cohesive in salvaging this large ship, particularly\nafter the competition of the general elections has ended.<\/p>\n
President Prabowo repeatedly accused his critics of gaining financial\nbenefit from evaluating the government. On 12 January 2026, for example,\nPrabowo claimed there were a handful of people who frequently mocked him\nand spread negative views about his administration. He suspected these\nindividuals were being paid by foreign powers.<\/p>\n
Threatens to Discipline Critical Observers<\/p>\n
President Prabowo not only expressed anger at observers criticising\nhim during the cabinet session at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on\n13 March 2026, but also threatened to take disciplinary action against\nobservers he considered unpatriotic. The Gerindra Party chairman accused\nseveral observers of lacking patriotic sentiments. He claimed they\ngained financial benefit from criticising the government.<\/p>\n
Prabowo said there were several types of observers in Indonesia. One\ntype, he said, were observers who did not wish for his government to\nsucceed because they had hidden motives. \u201cIn my view, their attitude is\nnarrow-minded, not patriotic,\u201d Prabowo said during the full cabinet\nmeeting. Prabowo speculated about the motivations of these critics.\nAccording to him, they could feel defeated, lack power, or have lost\nsources of income because his administration, which he claimed was\nstrict on corruption, had cut off their funding. \u201cEspecially thieves and\ncorrupt individuals, they feel harmed by our government. We want to\ndiscipline them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Proposes Salary Cuts for Ministers and Parliament to Achieve Savings\namid War Concerns<\/p>\n
President Prabowo Subianto wishes to implement cost-saving measures\nto address potential crises resulting from a conflict between the United\nStates and Israel against Iran. He cited examples of other countries\nthat have already implemented savings through salary cuts for\nofficials.<\/p>\n
He stated that Pakistan is practising austerity because it views the\nMiddle East crisis as equivalent to the Covid-19 pandemic. \u201cThey even\nreduced salaries for cabinet members, for parliament members, and all\nthese salary savings are collected to assist the most vulnerable\ngroups,\u201d Prabowo said during the cabinet session at the Presidential\nPalace in Jakarta on Friday, 13 March 2026.<\/p>\n
Pakistan, according to Prabowo, has also implemented a work-from-home\npolicy for civil servants and private sector employees. For the purpose\nof savings, Prabowo said, the South Asian nation has also reduced\nworking days. Additionally, Prabowo noted that Pakistan has required\ngovernment agencies to reduce the use of official vehicles by 60\npercent. Prabowo noted that other countries have suspended foreign\ntravel in the interest of savings.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey reduced and did not allow government funds to be used for\nceremonial events and the like. Then all their higher education\ninstitutions moved to online, all schools stopped for two weeks,\u201d\nPrabowo said. According to Prabowo, these various policies can reduce\noil consumption, the price and supply of which have been volatile due to\nthe Middle East conflict. The Gerindra Party chairman also hopes\nIndonesia can take similar cost-saving steps.<\/p>\n
Like Pakistan, Prabowo said Indonesia also needs to take steps to\nsave on fuel oil. However, he stated that the government is currently\nreviewing the policies it will adopt. \u201cI think we also need to strive to\nimplement savings,\u201d said the former defence minister. Prabowo said he\nwill study the steps the government can take in the coming days.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/cabinet-session-prabowo-addresses-criticism-and-cost-saving-measures-1773453140", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }