Senior PDI-P politician Panda Nababan has died. Relatives and\ncolleagues have been remembering him and his life.<\/p>\n
Panda Nababan died at his home in Pondok Aren, South Tangerang, at\n9.37am on Monday (9 November 2026), after battling leukaemia.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is true. We are deeply saddened by the loss of a fighter,\u201d PDI-P\npolitician Guntur Romli said.<\/p>\n
Panda Nababan\u2019s profile<\/strong><\/p>\n Panda Nababan was born on 13 February 1944. He completed his\neducation in Medan, North Sumatra, before moving to Jakarta to continue\nhis studies at Bung Karno University in 1966.<\/p>\n He began his career as a journalist at the daily Warta Harian in\n1969\u201370. In 1979, he had the opportunity to pursue further journalism\nstudies at NRC Handelsblad in Rotterdam.<\/p>\n His career continued to advance: he was an editor at the daily Sinar\nHarapan from 1970 to 1987, then deputy managing editor of the daily\nPrioritas in 1987\u201388.<\/p>\n Panda also served as head of research and development at Media\nIndonesia in 1988\u201389. One of the high points of his journalistic career\ncame in 1976, when he received the Adinegoro Journalism Award.<\/p>\n Panda entered politics in 1993, joining the Indonesian Democratic\nParty (PDI). In 1998, amid a leadership crisis at the PDI, he joined the\nIndonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) and became a\nmember of the House of Representatives from its PDI Perjuangan\nfaction.<\/p>\n Panda Nababan later became known as one of PDI-P\u2019s leading figures.\nHe had a longstanding historical relationship with PDI-P chair Megawati\nSoekarnoputri.<\/p>\n PDI-P remembers a campaigning journalist and fighting\npolitician<\/strong><\/p>\n PDI-P expressed its deep condolences over Panda Nababan\u2019s death. The\nparty\u2019s secretary-general, Hasto Kristiyanto, remembered him as a\ncampaigning journalist and a fighting politician.<\/p>\n \u201cThroughout his life, Mr Panda Nababan was known for his courage,\nsteadfastness and commitment to democracy. His passing is a great loss,\nnot only for his family and friends, but also for the press, PDI\nPerjuangan and Indonesia\u2019s democratic life,\u201d Hasto said in a statement\nin Jakarta on Monday (9 November 2026).<\/p>\n Hasto said Panda Nababan had combined many years of journalism with a\npolitical career. He said Panda showed sharp thinking, a critical\noutlook and the courage to speak the truth.<\/p>\n According to Hasto, Panda\u2019s critical approach and resolve offered an\nimportant lesson: democracy must not lose its moral voice. Hasto\nspecifically recalled Panda Nababan\u2019s long struggle for democracy,\nincluding during the early years of the New Order government.<\/p>\n \u201cBang Panda was known for consistently paving the way for democracy.\nHis struggle was evident not only when he stood alongside Ibu Megawati\nSoekarnoputri in the PDI in opposition to the authoritarianism of the\nNew Order,\u201d Hasto said.<\/p>\n He referred to Panda Nababan\u2019s experience of imprisonment during\npolitical struggles in the early New Order period. Hasto cited Ken\nWard\u2019s book NU, PDI, and the Violence of the 1971 Election<\/em>,\nwhich discusses political dynamics and the exercise of power during the\n1971 election.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the book, Bang Panda is said to have served a prison sentence\nalongside a Japanese journalist for opposing fraud in the first election\nof the New Order,\u201d Hasto said.<\/p>\n Besides being known as a journalist and democracy campaigner, Panda\nNababan had a talent for political communication and for bridging\ndifferent views and factions within the party. Hasto described him as a\nfighter with broad experience, strong negotiating skills and a clear\nunderstanding of political dynamics and conflicts.<\/p>\n PDI-P will pay special tribute to Panda Nababan through the party\u2019s\nprotocols. Hasto said his death had left an important legacy for the\nnext generation.<\/p>\n \u201cFarewell, Bang Panda Nababan. The mark you left through your service\nis part of history; your courage is an example; and your fighting spirit\nwill live on in the memory of all party cadres,\u201d Hasto said.<\/p>\n Cak Imin remembers Panda Nababan as tireless in his fight for\nthe people<\/strong><\/p>\n National Awakening Party (PKB) chairman Muhaimin Iskandar, known as\nCak Imin, remembered Panda Nababan as someone who never tired of\nfighting for the people. He said he was grateful to have had a good\nrelationship with Panda.<\/p>\n \u201cA public figure, a role model, a fighter who never tired of standing\nup for the truth and the people. Whether as a journalist, politician or\nwriter, everything came down to commitment: commitment to the people and\nto the truth,\u201d Cak Imin said at the family home in South Tangerang.<\/p>\n He said Panda Nababan was consistent and had always taught younger\ncolleagues to be brave and strong.<\/p>\n \u201cWe spent a long time together in the House of Representatives. I saw\nhim as a consistent person, above all courageous. He had courage, and he\noften taught me about courage too. He always taught us how to stay\nstrong through the many waves of struggle,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI have met Putra and his family, and I share their grief. I hope his\nchildren can continue his struggle,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n Cak Imin said Panda Nababan often called him and had given him\nconsiderable advice.<\/p>\n \u201cYes, he often called me. In recent months, in particular, we spoke\nfrequently about the situation. He would offer suggestions and give me\nadvice,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n An extraordinary senior colleague<\/strong><\/p>\n Adian Napitupulu, a member of the House of Representatives from the\nPDI-P faction, remembered Panda Nababan as an unusual character. He\nrecalled a conversation with Panda after he had graduated from\nuniversity.<\/p>\n \u201cHe was a unique person, Bang Panda. After I finished university, he\ncalled me: \u2018So, you\u2019ve finished university; you\u2019re a graduate now. What\nare your plans?\u2019 I said, \u2018I want to set up a law firm, Bang,\u2019\u201d Adian\nsaid.<\/p>\n Panda Nababan asked what problem Adian was facing at the time. Adian\nsaid he had not yet rented an office, and that the police raided it soon\nafter it opened.<\/p>\n \u201c\u2018Why did the police raid it?\u2019 \u2018Because of these demonstrations; they\naccused us of this and that.\u2019 \u2018All right, it\u2019s fine to close it down.\nThat\u2019s cool,\u2019\u201d Adian recalled, imitating their conversation.<\/p>\n He remembered Panda Nababan\u2019s advice that life was already mapped out\nand that his own task was simply to do good.<\/p>\n Adian said Panda was also an extraordinary senior colleague. He\nrecalled that Panda had once turned up at his house early in the morning\njust to insist that he see a doctor.<\/p>\n \u201cHe cared so much about his juniors. Imagine: at his age, he came to\nmy house early in the morning just to remind me to go to the doctor. To\nme, that was extraordinary,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Honesty and integrity<\/strong><\/p>\n Former Jakarta governor Djarot Saiful Hidayat also remembered his\nsenior colleague in PDI-P, Panda Nababan. He described him as a person\nof integrity who was straightforward.<\/p>\n \u201cI had known Bang Panda for decades. He was a person of integrity,\nhonest and straightforward, with the distinctive character of a Batak\nperson: A is A, B is B,\u201d Djarot said.<\/p>\n He said Panda Nababan was honest. Shortly before his death, Panda had\ndiscussed with him the controversy surrounding Vice-President Gibran\nRakabuming Raka.<\/p>\n \u201cWe discussed it recently. He often called me, especially to discuss\nthe Constitutional Court ruling, which said that Gibran did not have a\nhigh-school or equivalent qualification,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cHe reminded me that he had long said Gibran was a \u2018green\u2019 young man\nwho was not fit to be vice-president. He said this repeatedly. He also\nsaid constitutional steps should be taken in Gibran\u2019s case,\u201d Djarot\nadded.<\/p>\n Djarot said Panda Nababan\u2019s death was a major loss. He also recalled\nPanda\u2019s frequent lesson that the truth would always prevail.<\/p>\n \u201cHe was a great journalist. It is not only PDI Perjuangan that has\nlost Bang Panda Nababan; the whole Indonesian nation has lost him,\u201d he\nsaid.<\/p>\n Rano recalls his last meeting with Panda Nababan<\/strong><\/p>\n Jakarta Deputy Governor Rano Karno remembered Panda Nababan as\nsomeone who often advised him on politics. Rano also recalled his last\nmeeting with Panda and said he had received a message from him.<\/p>\n \u201cWe last met in person about six months ago; otherwise, we\ncommunicated on WhatsApp. I had heard that his condition had been\ndeclining recently, and he was 82,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI had only just heard that he also had leukaemia. I heard the news\nthis morning. I was supposed to meet Bang Putra this morning, but then\nPutra called to say, \u2018Dad is ill.\u2019 I thought he had been admitted to\nhospital. Not long afterwards, we heard in the group chat that he had\ndied,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n Rano said Panda was a good senior colleague who knew a great deal\nabout history.<\/p>\n Their last in-person meeting was about six months earlier, when Panda\nvisited Jakarta City Hall and stopped by Rano\u2019s office, possibly to meet\nthe governor. They chatted briefly for about ten minutes.<\/p>\n Rano said Panda had not given him much advice on that occasion,\nsimply telling him to take care of his health.<\/p>\n \u201cI said, \u2018Yes, Opung.\u2019 I call him Opung. We can only pray for the\nbest,\u201d he said.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/remembering-panda-nababan-1794271896",
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