State Palace Clarifies Gibran's Seating Position During Cabinet Meeting

Minister of State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi has spoken out regarding the seating position of Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka during the Plenary Cabinet Session on Monday (20/7). During the session, Gibran sat among the Coordinating Ministers. He did not sit in the centre alongside President Prabowo Subianto, but instead sat next to Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Airlangga Hartarto. Pras stated that this was merely a technical issue. ‘That is why, in answering the question about the layout, if you noticed yesterday, the President was in the centre, and if the question is about the Vice President’s position, in our view this is purely a matter of technical necessity. There is nothing else that needs to be worried about,’ Pras said at the Presidential Palace Complex in Jakarta on Tuesday (21/7). Pras explained that, technically, Prabowo required a teleprompter to present the achievements of the Cabinet Meeting. He said the teleprompter was needed to explain the data being presented. ‘So yesterday he used a tool called a teleprompter. That is why, in answering the question about the layout, if you noticed yesterday, the President was in the centre,’ he stated. Pras also mentioned that the seating position had absolutely nothing to do with cabinet cohesion. He said the Red and White Cabinet is currently in a very solid position. ‘Not at all, absolutely not. We are currently at our most cohesive, everyone is working hard to achieve what the President has outlined,’ he said. At the same time, Pras said that what was more important than the seating position was the substance of what Prabowo conveyed during the plenary cabinet session. ‘It is about providing assessments, giving evaluations, and conveying the achievements of the Red and White Cabinet, which for approximately 21 months has been entrusted under the leadership of President Prabowo and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka. Many achievements have been successfully attained,’ he remarked.