TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Analysis: Military, police contest in Prabowo’s administration
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
Marine Corps soldiers perform chants during the departure ceremony of Rim Of The Pacific Task Force in Surabaya, East Java, on May 31, 2024. (Antara/Didik Suhartono) (Antara/Didik Suhartono)
P
resident Prabowo Subianto, a former Army general, has relied heavily on the Indonesian Military (TNI) to accelerate the implementation of his flagship programs. However, he has maintained some distance from the National Police. Despite this, both the TNI and the police wield significant influence in Prabowo’s administration, with several figures from military and police backgrounds securing key cabinet positions and playing crucial roles in power transitions.
At least 10 individuals with TNI backgrounds hold positions in Prabowo’s Red and White cabinet, including Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, Foreign Minister Sugiono, Transmigration Minister Iftitah, Deputy Coordinating Political and Security Affairs Minister Friedrich Lodewijk Paulus, Deputy State Secretary Minister Bambang Eko Suharyanto, Deputy Defense Minister Donny Ermawan, Deputy Maritime and Fisheries Minister Didit Herdiawan and Deputy Agrarian and Spatial Planning Minister Ossy Dermawan and Cabinet Secretary Maj. Teddy Indra Wijaya.
Meanwhile, five members of Prabowo’s administration come from police backgrounds, including Coordinating Political and Security Affairs Minister Budi Gunawan, Home Minister Tito Karnavian, Immigration and Corrections Minister Agus Andrianto, Deputy Transportation Minister Suntana and Deputy Administrative and Bureaucratic Reforms Minister Purwadi Arianto.
Several figures with military backgrounds, such as Sjafrie, Sugiono, Donny and Maj. Teddy, have close ties with Prabowo. Meanwhile, Budi Gunawan and Tito Karnavian, along with National Police chief Gen. Listyo Sigit Prabowo and TNI commander Gen. Agus Subiyanto, are considered loyal to former president Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, positioning them as Jokowi’s key figures in Prabowo’s government.
Prabowo has retained both Listyo Sigit and Agus Subiyanto as a continuation of Jokowi’s legacy, as they still have significant time left before reaching retirement age. This has prevented Prabowo from appointing his own candidates to these key positions.
So far, the only intelligence post firmly under Prabowo’s influence is the State Intelligence Agency (BIN), after Jokowi appointed Muhammad Herindra, just before Prabowo’s inauguration in October 2024.
With a long career in the military, Prabowo feels at ease working with the TNI and has entrusted it with overseeing several key government initiatives, including the free nutritious meal program, food estate development, clean water exploration in arid regions and securing the meals program, particularly in Papua, against separatist threats. In contrast, he has not assigned the police any specific tasks beyond their traditional law enforcement duties.
