Prabowo Vows Systemic Economic and Political Overhaul Amid Mounting Political Pressure

JAKARTA, Investortrust.id — President Prabowo Subianto has called for a sweeping overhaul of Indonesia's political and economic systems, warning that entrenched oligarchic interests, exorbitant election costs, and foreign-backed disinformation campaigns are threatening the nation's sovereignty and constitutional mandate.

Speaking on Saturday (14/11/2026) at the opening of the Muhammadiyah Tanwir and 114th Anniversary celebration at Muhammadiyah University in Palu, Central Sulawesi—though one report mistakenly placed the venue in South Sulawesi—Prabowo framed his administration's agenda as a systemic revolution aimed at eradicating poverty and halting decades of capital flight and resource extraction.

The president's combative rhetoric follows a turbulent period for his administration, marked by declining public approval ratings and growing opposition to flagship initiatives such as the Free Nutritious Meals program (MBG) and the Red and White Village Cooperatives (Koperasi Desa Merah Putih). His remarks also come on the heels of a wiretapping scandal involving one of his aides and the resignation of his vice president—a development echoed in related reporting on Prabowo's search for a replacement—which have intensified scrutiny over his government's stability and direction.

"What my aides and I are working on is how to fix a flawed system, how to rescue the wealth of the Indonesian people so that it can be enjoyed by all Indonesians," Prabowo told attendees, adding that his administration is determined to eliminate hunger and poverty across the archipelago.

Vowing Systemic Reform and Reclaiming National Wealth

Prabowo argued that Indonesia's natural wealth has been systematically siphoned abroad for decades, enriching foreign interests while leaving ordinary citizens in poverty. He expressed frustration over a political and economic environment in which public officials have historically been susceptible to bribery.

"I said earlier that since childhood, my oath has been to dedicate my body and soul to the people and the Indonesian nation. At my retirement age, must I still see my people poor, must I see our wealth continuously taken away, must I see our leaders willing to be bribed, willing to be bought? Ministers bought, generals bought, presidents willing to be bought, brothers and sisters. I shake my head. Is this my country?" Prabowo said.

Asserting that he has the backing of Indonesia's largest Islamic mass organizations—Muhammadiyah, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), and Persatuan Islam (Persis)—alongside farmers and fishermen, the former army general declared himself uniquely positioned to drive fundamental change.

"Muhammadiyah is behind me, brothers and sisters. NU, Muhammadiyah, Persis are behind me. The only one who can make a revolution in Indonesia is Prabowo Subianto, brothers and sisters. Farmers are behind me, fishermen are behind me—why? Because I want to obey and remain loyal to my oath before the Indonesian people," he said.

Prabowo also dismissed threats of street protests or civil unrest orchestrated by vested interests opposing his policies. "And if I do not comply, if I do not obey, they will shake me up. They will organize demonstrations, they will create riots. I am speaking frankly about these people. Are there journalists there? It does not matter, the people already know my stance. If they think I am intimidated, I will not be intimidated, brothers and sisters," he stated.

Allegations of Multi-Trillion-Rupiah Disinformation and Co-opted Intellectuals

During his address, Prabowo alleged that shadowy financiers are deploying massive sums of money to undermine public trust in his government through coordinated online smear campaigns and recycled misinformation. He urged Muhammadiyah leaders to engage directly with university students to insulate young Indonesians from manipulation.

"I ask Muhammadiyah figures to please go down to the campuses and convince our children, our young people, not to allow themselves to be used as tools by shady figures. People who have tens of trillions of rupiah—those tens of trillions are being used to destroy the nation," Prabowo said. "Tens of trillions are used to sow distrust toward leaders through lies, through hoaxes, through false news, generating fear. Videos from years ago are being circulated over and over again."

The president also launched a blistering attack on academics and commentators in Jakarta whom he accused of serving foreign agendas while criticizing his administration's food security and anti-hunger programs—such as the Free Nutritious Meals initiative—as wasteful.

"In my view, some intellectual figures have become intellectual prostitutes. Their intelligence is being used by forces we do not know, and ultimately it is foreign powers that want Indonesia divided," Prabowo said. "There are experts at campuses in Jakarta—I do not know whose campuses those are. When we talk about wanting to eliminate hunger, they call it wastefulness. Yet for decades, when our wealth flowed out of Indonesia, they stayed silent. No comments, no criticism."

Recalling nightly waves of coordinated social media attacks, Prabowo likened the campaigns to colonial-era divide-and-rule tactics, vowing to press ahead regardless of political blowback. "This President of the Republic of Indonesia wants to help the poor, and gets beaten up, slandered, hammered, threatened in all sorts of ways. Do I care? Go ahead! I will keep moving forward," he declared.

Curbing High-Cost Politics and Returning to Constitutional Economics

Turning to electoral governance, Prabowo warned that Indonesia's democratic system has been compromised by illicit money and prohibitive campaign expenses that lock out honest leaders.

"We have built the system we desire, which is democracy. We want democracy—but not a democracy that can ultimately be bought, held hostage, and controlled by those with money, money obtained through unlawful means," Prabowo said.

To illustrate the scale of the distortion, the president cited staggering campaign costs across regional and national elections. "How can it be that to become a regent, one has to spend tens of billions of rupiah? I hear in some places it takes Rp 100 billion, and even then, victory is not guaranteed," he said, noting that candidates for the House of Representatives (DPR) similarly spend between Rp 40 billion and Rp 50 billion without assurance of winning a seat.

Questioning whether such practices align with the vision of founding figures such as Muhammadiyah founder KH Ahmad Dahlan and Ki Bagus Hadikusumo, Prabowo said he has initiated discussions with political party chairmen to overhaul the electoral framework. "If there is a deviation, we must correct it. Praise God, there is growing awareness. Almost all political party chairmen I have spoken with understand, realize, and agree that we must reform the political system," he said.

On the economic front, Prabowo pledged to spend the remainder of his term realigning national policy with Articles 33 and 34 of the 1945 Constitution, which mandate that the economy be structured as a joint endeavor based on the principle of kinship and that strategic sectors and natural resources be controlled by the state for the maximum prosperity of the people.

"I am determined that for the remainder of my mandate, I will continue to fix an economic system that I believe previously deviated from Article 33 and Article 34 of the 1945 Constitution," Prabowo said. "Praise God, we are now oriented toward Article 33. The economy is organized as a joint endeavor, with togetherness, based on the principle of kinship."