Gerindra politician explains paradoxical legacy inherited by Prabowo
Jakarta, Kompas.com - Gerindra politicianAzis Subekti, a member of the House of Representatives’ second commission, explained that President Prabowo Subianto inherited a paradoxical condition in Indonesia, now being addressed through the single window export policy by state-owned enterprise PT Danantara Sumber Daya Indonesia (DSi).
“We see mountains being cleared and transformed into vast lakes, ships carrying minerals abroad, millions of hectares of land generating wealth, annual growth figures announced, and skyscrapers towering over cities,” Az said in a press statement on Tuesday (26 May 2026).
Az highlighted Indonesia’s prolonged acceptance of this paradox as normal, particularly in terms of the people’s economic conditions. “Yet at the same time, we see farmers selling rice paddy anxiously, fishermen returning with high diesel costs, rural youth leaving villages due to lack of jobs, and the middle class living in quiet fear over rising education, healthcare, and future costs,” he added.
He stated that the government has been slow in building industrial sovereignty despite infrastructure development. Indonesia often exports natural resources but lags in domestic value addition, instead importing finished goods. “In many regions, this irony is stark. Resource-rich areas produce impoverished communities. Coal-producing regions still have crumbling schools. Strategic mining areas leave villages with murky water and potholed roads. Palm oil grows abundantly, yet workers barely get by. The world’s largest maritime nation still forces its fishermen to battle brutal markets and unfair prices,” Az explained.
Thus, Indonesia’s wealth continues to leak abroad while the people only receive residual benefits. “We are a nation gradually accustomed to seeing wealth flow out while the people only get the leftovers. It’s as if the people’s rights are just to patience while waiting for growth to trickle down. This is the legacy Prabowo Subianto inherited,” Az said.
“It’s not just the state budget. Not just national debt. Not just fiscal deficit. What was inherited is an economic culture, the state’s way of thinking, bureaucratic functioning, how elites view development, and how national wealth is distributed,” Az added.
He acknowledged the model was not entirely wrong, as it kept Indonesia stable amid global crises. However, over time, stability alone proved insufficient to resolve economic inequalities. ” People don’t live by growth figures alone but by a sense of justice,” he concluded.