Prabowo to NTB: Maintain Unity and Defend the People

President Prabowo Subianto left five messages for the people and local government of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) after inaugurating the Meninting Dam in West Lombok Regency on Friday (10/7/2026). NTB Governor Lalu Muhamad Iqbal said the five messages were conveyed directly by the President on his way to the presidential helicopter before departing for Jakarta. “The five major messages from the President for NTB are to strengthen unity, repay the people’s trust through real work, ensure development benefits the community, present leadership that sides with the people, and build a clean and integrity-driven governance system,” Iqbal said in a statement in Mataram on Saturday (11/7/2026). According to Iqbal, the President also expressed his delight at being able to visit NTB again after quite some time. “He told me directly that he was very happy to be able to visit NTB. He even expressed a sincere desire to help with more things in NTB,” Iqbal stated. Iqbal assessed that the message shows the central government’s attention to NTB does not stop at the construction of the Meninting Dam or other national strategic projects. The central government, he said, is committed to strengthening synergy with the NTB Provincial Government to accelerate development that has a direct impact on people’s welfare. The President’s message also reinforced the substance of his speech during the dam’s inauguration. In his speech, Prabowo repeatedly stressed the importance of maintaining unity, repaying the people’s trust, and ensuring that every development project truly benefits the community. The President also asked regional leaders to manage development responsibly and ensure water from the Meninting Dam flows to agricultural land. This is considered crucial for strengthening the agricultural sector and food security in NTB. Iqbal said the President’s visit to NTB was not merely an infrastructure inauguration agenda. The visit also served as an affirmation of the regional development direction oriented towards food security, public welfare, and good governance.