Rachmat Gobel, Founder of Panasonic Gobel, Passes Away

Rachmat Gobel, the founder of Panasonic Gobel Indonesia and a member of the House of Representatives, passed away on Friday at the age of 63. He died at Brawijaya Hospital in Tebet, South Jakarta. His body will be laid to rest in Gorontalo.

Born on 3 September 1962, Gobel began his career by inheriting the business established by his father, Thayeb Mohammad Gobel. He started as a trainer at his father’s battery factory before rising through the ranks to become President Director in 1994.

The company’s origins trace back to 1954 when Thayeb Mohammad Gobel founded PT Transistor Radio Manufacturing. A pivotal moment came in 1960 when the company signed a cooperation agreement with Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Ltd, leading to the formation of a joint venture in 1970 under the name PT National Gobel. The brand later transitioned to Panasonic, and the company became known as PT Panasonic Gobel Indonesia, a leading provider of household appliances.

Beyond business, Gobel was active in the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin), serving as Deputy Chairman for Industry, Technology, and Maritime Affairs from 2004 to 2008. His political career included a brief tenure as Minister of Trade in 2014 under President Joko Widodo, a position he held for ten months before being replaced by Thomas Lembong. In 2016, he joined the NasDem Party, where he served on the Advisory Board and later as Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives for the 2019-2024 period.