Prabowo Promises Official Residences for 8,900 Judges
President Prabowo Subianto has instructed the Minister of Housing and Settlement Areas, Maruarar Sirait, to build official residences for all judges in the country. According to his calculations, there are nearly 9,000 judges in Indonesia.
“Judges number around 8,900, so I think we are capable of providing them with decent official residences,” Prabowo stated at the Attorney General’s Office complex in Jakarta on Wednesday, 13 May 2026, as broadcast on the Presidential Secretariat’s YouTube channel.
The former Minister of Defence noted that although the government has already increased judges’ salaries, their housing allowances remain insufficient. During their tenure, judges often transfer from one region to another.
“I have also instructed the Minister of People’s Housing to create official residences for all judges,” Prabowo said. “Because, even though their income has risen significantly, the monthly housing allowance from their salary is, if I’m not mistaken, Rp 1.5 million. Yet judges are assigned duties, sometimes to one regency, sometimes transferring to another province.”
In his speech, Prabowo recounted receiving news that Indonesian judges’ salaries are now higher than those in Malaysia. He heard this from the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, Sunarto.
“Last week, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court met me and told me that he had just attended a meeting of ASEAN Supreme Court chiefs. Then, the Malaysian Chief Justice told the Indonesian Chief Justice, and he relayed to me, ‘Your Honour, I salute Indonesia. For the first time, Indonesian judges’ salaries are above Malaysian judges’ salaries’,” Prabowo said.
The Gerindra Party Chairman stated that even Indonesian junior judges’ salaries are higher than those of Malaysian junior judges. “The salary of the most junior Indonesian judge is already almost twice that of the most junior Malaysian judge,” Prabowo remarked.
He asked those working in the executive and legislative branches not to be envious of the judges’ salary increases. Judges’ salaries and allowances rose by up to 280 per cent during his administration.
Prabowo said the salary increase for judges is one of his commitments. “One of our first steps was to raise our judges’ salaries by nearly 300 per cent. I wanted 300 per cent, but the Minister of Finance only agreed to 280 per cent. Alright then,” he said.
For Prabowo, the government must improve judges’ welfare through salary increases and the provision of official residences. This is to minimise the potential for corruption.
“I believe and am convinced that the issue of corruption and injustice must be addressed in the judiciary. Therefore, we must respect our judges, select them well, and provide them with sufficient income so that our judges cannot be bribed,” Prabowo stated.