Prabowo: My Close Relationship with Farmers Stems from My Background as a Military Commander

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto stated that he has a close relationship with farmers due to his background as a military commander. According to him, a soldier cannot carry out operations without the availability of food, especially rice. Therefore, the commander of a combat force must understand the importance of food in every military operation. “I am close to farmers because I was the General Chairman of HKTI for quite some time, and now I have been replaced by the current General Chairman, who is the Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Mr. Sudaryono,” said Prabowo during a speech at the Simultaneous Corn Harvest Festival and Groundbreaking Ceremony for the National Food Security Warehouse of the Indonesian National Police in East Java, Saturday (16/5/2026). Prabowo explained that before carrying out operations, troops not only check ammunition supplies but also calculate rice stocks to determine the duration of the operation. “When we are about to embark on a combat operation, we check not only bullets. We check bullets, but we also check first, is there rice? If there is rice, we calculate how many days the rice will last,” said Prabowo. “If the rice lasts for 5 days, then we will operate for 5 days. If the rice lasts for 14 days, we will operate for 14 days. Imagine, brothers and sisters, if there is no rice. If there is no rice, the soldiers will also have difficulty operating,” he continued. “That’s why in the military, we are taught survival. If there is no food, we have to find food ourselves,” Prabowo explained. Furthermore, the head of state mentioned the history of Indonesia’s independence struggle when the military and police did not have adequate salaries or state budgets. Prabowo said that during that time, farmers helped the military and police survive. In fact, many villagers provided food to soldiers who were training. “When I was training in villages, the villagers came out to give us food and drinks. Even though they were living in very difficult conditions,” Prabowo said. “They had bananas, they gave them. They had yams, they gave them. They had tiwul, so they gave tiwul,” he continued. “So, that is the history of how I became more aware at that time of the importance of farmers and fishermen. Farmers and fishermen are the producers of food for the entire nation and country,” Prabowo explained. Based on this, Prabowo believes that the government must give great attention to food issues so that the nation’s resilience remains intact. “Therefore, everyone who wants to see our country and nation prosper must, must, must focus and pay attention to this food issue,” he concluded. KOMPAS.com is committed to providing clear, trustworthy, and balanced facts. Support the sustainability of clear journalism and enjoy comfortable reading without ads through Membership. Join KOMPAS.com Plus now.