Rupiah Slumps, Anies Urges Government to Take Economic Pressures Seriously

Republika.co.id, Jakarta — The 2024 presidential candidate Anies Rasyid Baswedan has highlighted Indonesia’s worsening domestic economy, worsened by the rupiah’s slide to a historic low.

The Governor of Jakarta for 2017–2022 said that Indonesia’s economy has not been in good shape lately. The rupiah’s continual weakness is seen as affecting various aspects of people’s livelihoods.

‘I have been closely following what is happening in this country, and frankly the situation is not good. The rupiah has fallen to a historic low,’ Anies said in a statement on X, cited by Republika in Jakarta, Wednesday, 20 May 2026.

He argued that Indonesia’s economic challenges will be protracted. The geopolitical situation remains unstable. On the other hand, there is potential for El Niño, which would impact food security.

The former rector of Paramadina University said the public needs certainty from the government at this moment. That certainty must be provided so that the market does not become volatile.

‘In such a situation, the one thing most needed by the market and the public is certainty. Not false calm, not problems dressed up with sweeteners, but certainty born of transparency and honesty, from a clear direction, from a government that knows where this country is headed,’ Anies said.

Nevertheless, he added, the government today cannot provide that certainty. Moreover, several state officials respond to today’s situation casually and tend to joke. As a result, the market becomes confused and investors hold back from investing domestically.

Furthermore, Anies said, the government today does not set an example. This is visible in the government’s focus on matters that should not be prioritised. Meanwhile, the public are asked to live frugally.

‘Warnings have come from everywhere. From domestic economists, from international financial institutions, from national and international media monitoring Indonesia. It is impossible that they are all wrong at the same time,’ Anies said.