Discrepancies in TNI and Polri Data: Expert Indicates Elite Conflict Behind Andrie Yunus Case
Political observer Ubedilah Badrun assesses the discrepancies in information between the TNI and Polri concerning the identities of the perpetrators in the acid attack on KontraS activist Andrie Yunus as an embarrassing situation that reflects the unprofessionalism of state apparatus.
“It is highly embarrassing if there are differences in the perpetrator’s initials between Polri and TNI. These are two state institutions funded by the sweat of the people, yet they work unprofessionally,” Ubedilah stated to Media Indonesia in Jakarta on Thursday (19/3).
He views these data differences as revealing serious issues in the relationship between the two institutions. According to him, this indicates a crisis of trust between them.
“This shows that the two institutions do not trust each other. They held separate press conferences without coordination and with differing findings,” he said.
Furthermore, Ubedilah sees the TNI’s step in announcing the perpetrators as not detached from public opinion pressures developing on social media.
“This indicates that TNI apparatus feel cornered by the quite rational public narrative that the victim was attacked because he often criticised militarism and the TNI Law, so the perpetrators are suspected to be from TNI apparatus. This public pressure then prompted TNI to announce that the perpetrators are four people from within,” he stated.
Further, he assesses that these information discrepancies also reflect long-standing tensions between Polri and TNI.
“This shows there is a latent rivalry between Polri and TNI that has been ongoing for quite some time, at least over the last 10 years since the Joko Widodo era,” he said.
According to him, this conflict is triggered by weak leadership in managing inter-agency relations, as well as classic issues like budget jealousy and competition for socio-political roles. He even assesses that the situation has the potential to become sharper in the Prabowo Subianto administration era.
“This rivalry is more due to leadership failures in maintaining harmony, plus jealousy over budget allocations and socio-political roles. The situation becomes sharper after power is held by President Prabowo,” he emphasised.
Ubedilah also reminds that this acid attack case cannot be seen merely as an ordinary criminal act, but potentially related to a larger elite conflict.
“This crime could be a sign of a highly political elite rivalry, where powerful parties feel threatened by each other. The acid attack could trigger increased tensions among them,” he stated.
On that basis, he emphasises the importance of uncovering the intellectual actors behind the incident to clarify the case.
“The most important thing is to uncover who the intellectual actors behind this attack are, not just stopping at the field perpetrators,” he concluded.
Danpuspom TNI, Mayjen Yusri Nuryanto, assures that his side is still delving into the possibility of orders from superiors or motives behind the attack on the activist.