Habiburokhman Suspects Saiful Mujani Wants to Oust Prabowo

Deputy Chairman of the Gerindra Party, Habiburokhman, believes that Saiful Mujani’s remarks about public consolidation to bring down President Prabowo Subianto warrant criticism. According to him, there are political motives behind the critique voiced by the Professor of Political Science at Syarif Hidayatullah State Islamic University. “We know that Saiful Mujani is a wealthy political elite who has long been at odds with President Prabowo, including during the recent presidential election. Is Saiful Mujani’s criticism purely disseminated for improvement, or is it merely a partisan political operation?” Habiburokhman stated in a written release on Monday, 13 April 2026. At an event titled “Halalbihalal of Analysts Before Being Regulated” at Beranda Utan Kayu in East Jakarta on Tuesday, 31 March 2026, Mujani participated as a speaker alongside other concerned analysts and academics regarding the direction of Prabowo’s government. The founder of Saiful Mujani Research and Consulting questioned the possibility of public consolidation to pressure political change, including pushing Prabowo to step down from his position. “Can we consolidate ourselves to bring down Prabowo?” Mujani said at the time. Habiburokhman suspects that Mujani may have intentions to oust Prabowo for personal gain. “If Saiful Mujani is eager to seize power, that is his right. However, the political cost to be paid by the people would be too great if any party seeks to seize power unconstitutionally,” he stated. According to Habiburokhman, the public has the opportunity to evaluate Prabowo’s performance at the end of his term in 2029. Thus, until that time arrives, the Head of State has at least five years to fulfil his political promises. Furthermore, Habiburokhman is convinced that Prabowo is committed to upholding democracy in his first term of leadership. “In nearly 1.5 years of President Prabowo’s rule, not a single Indonesian citizen has been punished for criticising or even insulting President Prabowo,” he said. As for Saiful, he stated that he has reasons for urging the public to remove Prabowo from the government seat. Moreover, Saiful views the leadership of the former Commander of the Special Forces Command (Kopassus) as generally incompetent and lacking authority. “Prabowo is not presidential. A presidential president, in my view, is one who is inclusive, accepts diverse aspirations, and acts beyond partisan politics,” he said in a written release on Tuesday, 7 April 2026. He mentioned that presidential impeachment can be initiated by the House of Representatives (DPR). However, he doubts this step can succeed given that the Gerindra Party Chairman currently controls the legislative body. Even with the option of waiting until the 2029 elections, which are still 3.5 years away. According to Saiful, various policies implemented by Prabowo have the potential to make Indonesia worse, so change at the top of the government must be carried out immediately.