Purbaya Confirms No Immediate Plans to Cut TNI-Polri Budget

Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa has revealed that his ministry has no immediate plans regarding cuts to the defence budget, particularly for the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) and the National Police (Polri). He stated that such measures would only be implemented if the budget deficit were to widen substantially, though he believes this is still a distant prospect. “Not yet. But the way we see it, the budget allocation is large. If our deficit is truly disrupted, then we will cut it, but I feel that is not the case, we are still far from that point. So we are still adequate,” Purbaya said on Monday (20/7/2026).

On the same occasion, Purbaya also addressed the potential budget cuts for the Free Nutritious Meal (MBG) programme. He noted that the matter is still under discussion. “I want to meet the head of the MBG programme this week to see what the final strategy will be for this year. But clearly, there is a possibility of a reduction,” Purbaya said, although he could not yet confirm how much would be cut from the programme valued at IDR 268 trillion.

Previously, during a nationwide simultaneous harvest event with the TNI in Malang, East Java, on Friday (17/7/2026), President Prabowo Subianto spoke about making the defence budget, including the TNI and Polri, more efficient in order to alleviate poverty. He suggested that if necessary, the defence and police budgets should be reduced. “We will save our budget and make it efficient; if necessary, we will reduce the defence budget and the police budget to eradicate poverty,” Prabowo said. He then asked the TNI and Polri personnel present if they were willing and sincere about the potential cuts. The head of state further emphasised that the best defence is a strong and prosperous populace, urging the security forces to remain close to the community and commending their involvement in infrastructure improvement and food security programmes.