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View all search resultsEx-presidents Yudhoyono, Megawati skip Prabowo’s second state address
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President Prabowo Subianto (right) arrives to deliver his annual State of the Nation Address, ahead of the country's Independence Day celebrations, in Jakarta on August 14, 2026. (AFP/Bay Ismoyo)
F
ormer presidents Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Megawati Soekarnoputri were notably absent from the annual People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) plenary meeting on Friday, to hear President Prabowo Subianto deliver his second State of the Nation address as the country’s president.
Yudhoyono, the patron of the pro-government Democratic Party, is overseas for medical check-ups, according to a senior Dems politician.
“He’s having a checkup in the United States,” the party deputy chair Benny K. Harman said on Tuesday, adding that the medical examination would extend until the end of August.
Earlier this week, State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi said Yudhoyono was also unlikely to attend the upcoming Independence Day ceremony at the State Palace next Monday due to his overseas medical trip.
“It is part of a routine [health] examination. Most likely, he will not be able to attend the ceremony,” Prasetyo said on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Megawati, who is also the chair of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), the only party outside Prabowo’s ruling coalition, was not seen at the Senayan Legislative Complex in Central Jakarta on Friday morning as the annual state address started.
Prabowo’s immediate predecessor Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, meanwhile, was seen attending the event. Jokowi, whose support helped his eldest son, Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka, and Prabowo win the election in 2024, arrived at Senayan at around 7:38 a.m.
Prabowo won broad support in the last election by pledging to continue many of Jokowi's policies while promising to accelerate economic growth and launch pro-people programs, including the costly free nutritious meal program and Red and White Cooperatives.
This year’s state address is Prabowo’s second since assuming office in October 2024. It is held amid growing public disillusionment with the government.
A survey by Saiful Mujani Research and Consulting (SMRC) last month found that Prabowo’s approval rating had fallen to just 51.1 percent, down from the 81.2 percent in November 2025, with respondents saying they had grown increasingly dissatisfied with current economic, political and law enforcement conditions.
Other notable figures attending the annual state address on Friday were former vice presidents Jusuf Kalla, Ma’ruf Amin and Boediono. (tha/ipa)
