Cabinet Secretary Reveals 200,000 People Flock to People's Bazaar at Monas

Cabinet Secretary (Seskab) Teddy Indra Wijaya has revealed high public enthusiasm for the ‘Palace for the People’ people’s bazaar held in the National Monument (Monas) area. He stated that the number of visitors reached around 200,000 people.

“This morning’s report from the Police Chief indicated more than 100,000 people from 4 a.m. attending here, and it will surely get busier at night, possibly around 200,000,” said Teddy after inspecting the People’s Market at Monas, Central Jakarta, on Saturday night (28/3/2026).

He noted that the high attendance is also reflected in the depletion of the provided food. The government prepared around 300,000 portions of food and drinks for visitors, which were reported to have been almost entirely distributed.

Teddy explained that this event is an initiative by President Prabowo Subianto to prolong the Eid happiness for the public. He mentioned that a similar event previously held at the Palace exceeded the estimated numbers.

“So yesterday during Eid, there was ‘Palace for the People’, but the public’s enthusiasm at the Palace exceeded our estimates,” said Teddy.

“Then Mr President wanted to keep the joyful Eid atmosphere going, so an event like this was created,” he added.

Teddy explained that the purpose of hosting the people’s bazaar concept in an open space is to reach more citizens.

“Mr President wants the public to attend, feel the happiness, buy new items for their families for Eid, and feel comfortable here,” he clarified.

In the event, the government distributed around 100,000 vouchers worth Rp500,000 each. These vouchers can be exchanged for various necessities such as groceries, clothing, shoes, school supplies, and worship tools.

These products are provided by micro, small, and medium enterprises (UMKM) from various markets in the Jabodetabek region.

Additionally, around 1,000 street vendors were involved to provide free food and drinks for visitors. Various folk entertainment and children’s games were also held to add to the festivity of the event.

Teddy stated that the government is open to making this activity a regular agenda.

“This is the first time, of course, Mr President wants the best, so it will definitely be routine,” he said.

Although there were long queues due to the overwhelming number of visitors, Teddy assured that the event ran smoothly overall, including in terms of security. He also expressed apologies for the inconvenience.

“I apologised earlier for the queuing. We actually opened many doors, but due to the high enthusiasm, the queues were a bit long,” explained Teddy.

“I asked them one by one, and the citizens understood that it’s fine to queue, as it’s also an opportunity to enjoy the night atmosphere at Monas, the lights, music, and so on,” he added.

On the same occasion, Minister of UMKM Maman Abdurrahman assessed that the high public enthusiasm also created a lively atmosphere throughout the event. He said visitors remained entertained despite having to queue.

“Indeed, due to the extraordinary enthusiasm, there was a joyful atmosphere. We combined it with children’s games and music, so while waiting, the public stayed entertained,” said Maman.

He stated that this activity also brings significant economic impact, in line with the President’s directive to stimulate the economy post-Eid.

“This is also a momentum to move the economy. Because we involved around a thousand micro-businesses, food and drink vendors where everything moves—they order food, drinks, and so on,” explained Maman.

Additionally, around 100,000 packages of goods such as clothing, shoes, and bags worth around Rp200,000 per package were distributed in the event. Maman said this has a direct impact on business actors in various trade centres.

“This economic impact is like in Tanah Abang Market, then Senen Market, and some in Bandung, friends from shoe craft associations. That also ends up moving because they can sell, deplete their previous stock, and rotate to buy new stock,” clarified Maman.

“So this is the impact hoped for by Mr President to also stimulate the economy in this post-Eid moment,” he concluded.