In a matter of days, Indonesia will be officially led by a new president with the inauguration of Prabowo Subianto and his deputy Gibran Rakabuming Raka.
The couple won the presidential election held on 14 February 2024 with nearly 60% of the vote.
The inauguration of the President and Vice President-elect is planned to be held at the MPR-DPR RI Building in Jakarta on Sunday, 20 October 2024.
Prabowo has also called a number of names, including from celebrities and public figures from various fields, to his Jakarta residence on Monday (14/10) to be touted as potential cabinet ministers.
Prabowo Subianto Djojohadikusumo was born on 17 October 1951. His father, Soemitro Djojohadikusumo, was an economic expert and politician who had served as Minister of Trade and Industry, Minister of Finance, and Minister of Research and Development in the eras of President Soekarno and President Suharto.
Prior to politics, Prabowo was known for his military career with high-profile positions including Commanding General Kopassus and Commander of the Army Strategic Reserve Command or Kostrad.
However, in July 1998, Prabowo's military career stalled after the Honorary Council of Officers declared him proven to have committed several wrongdoings including in the case of the disappearance of a number of pro-democracy activists in the same year.
Several different terms were used to describe the termination of Prabowo's military career, including 'dismissal', 'dismissal from military service', and 'honorably dismissed'.
Many people talked about Indonesia's future under the leadership of Prabowo Subianto ahead of the President-elect's inauguration.
Indonesian political expert, lecturer, and academic at the Faculty of Social and Political Science (FISIP) of Andalas University, West Sumatra, Prof. Dr. H. Asrinaldi, S.Sos., M.Si, predicts that Prabowo's leadership character will not be much different from his predecessors, namely President Joko Widodo or Jokowi.
“I see what Mr. Prabowo has done remains with his cabinet which is not much different and many of the policies that are made later that continue Mr. Jokowi's policies,” he said.
This was done by Prabowo to fulfill his promise to continue “Mr. Jokowi's programs that did not work,” he added.
When asked if there was any chance the New Order dictatorship era would re-emerge given Prabowo's background as the top military official of his time, Asrinaldi said that the potential “just exists.”
“Although we do not say dictator, at least the character of militarism will appear in Mr. Prabowo's government because he himself is a man of military background,” Asrinaldi said.
“Innate or gesture or policy of a command nature could be possible that way.”
During the presidential election campaign, on various social media platforms, Prabowo's image was changed in such a way that his military character, synonymous with hard, stern, and rigid nature, changed into a gentle and humorous one.
It is touted as an attempt to win the hearts of Gen Z or those born in 1997 and 2012. As a result, the majority of the voters of Prabowo and Gibran are generations from this circle.
Nevertheless, Prabowo's original character as a former top military official began to be seen again after winning the presidential election, Asrinaldi said.
“(But) the context is nationalism yes,” he said. “For example he doesn't want a government that leverages power for the benefit of groups. Then it also chanted about anti corruption and officials shouldn't be corrupt. Well that's what we're happy about. '
Lecturer and academician at the Department of Social and Political Sciences at the Andalas university, West Sumatra, Prof Dr H. Asrinaldi, S.Sos., M.Si (L) and Desak Putu Sri Ratna Juwita. Credit: Supplied/Ade Mardiyati/Asrinaldi/Desak Putu
Bali resident Desak Putu Sri Ratna Juwita is one of Prabowo's supporters who believe his decision to vote for Prabowo-Gibran in yesterday's presidential election was right.
“I chose Prabowo because he looks foolish,” Ratna said. “Despite a lot of bad gossip about him, I believe he is good and will fight for the people.”
The 'bad gossip' is closely linked to the various allegations levelled at Prabowo including his involvement in the kidnapping of student activists as well as war crimes during the decades-long occupation of East Timor.
Responding to this, Asrinaldi said that the issue would “remain relevant to the history of Mr. Prabowo's leadership.”
“Many answers were given that these (cases) were completed in the context of his trial and dismissal,” he added. “We run out of energy if it goes on. So I think now I'm thinking about how to coordinate with Mr. Prabowo's government.”
One resident who asked that his identity be kept secret said the election of Prabowo-Gibran as President and Vice President was a setback for democracy and human rights enforcement in Indonesia.
“We still remember how Prabowo has traces of the past as a perpetrator of grave human rights violations,” he said. “We also remember how Gibran was put forward as a vice presidential candidate by manipulating the rules.”
Is Prabowo able to lead democratically?
“I doubt that because I see Mr. Prabowo has not changed from the one we knew in the past” he said.
He said he could only pray for a “miracle.”
“Miracles that can change Mr. Prabowo for the better, to be more democratic, to be more respectful of differences,” he hoped. “It also became better to understand what exactly the ideals of the nation's founders were when they proclaimed Indonesia in 1945 or 79 years ago.”
