The Prabowo Administration's Poor Communication

April 16, 2025 | 02:06 pm

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A number of blunders by government officials show that they are not working on the same frequency. This is the result of Prabowo’s management style.

THE communication problems within President Prabowo Subianto’s administration are not yet resolved almost half a year after his cabinet started working. The ‘retreat’ at the Military Academy campus in Magelang, Central Java, which was claimed to harmonize the new government, does not seem to have produced any results. More than simply a problem with members of the cabinet, Prabowo’s model of leadership is also a factor in this poor public communication.

A number of statements by officials serve as examples. Presidential Communication Chief Hasan Nasbi, for example, airily dismissed the intimidation in the form of a pig’s head being sent to the Tempo office in the middle of March 2025: “Just cook it.” He downplayed the magnitude of the threat towards press freedom, an essential element of democracy, in this incident.

In another example, Deputy Religious Affairs Minister Raden Muhammad Shafi’i commented on the ‘holiday bonuses’ demanded from companies by many mass organizations. He said that “there is no need to make a fuss because it is part of the Lebaran culture.” This statement legitimizes illegal levies and extortion against businesspeople, which will increase production costs and in the end burden the wider community as consumers. These levies increasingly make no sense at a time of worsening economic conditions.

It is not simply communications with the public, but also interactions between cabinet members that are not going smoothly. The President and his subordinates seem not to be on the same frequency. On a number of occasions, the tensions within the cabinet have been on public display. One example is the protest from Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Sakti Wahyu Trenggono about the dismantling of the sea barrier in Banten by the Indonesian Navy. However, this 30-kilometer barrier was dismantled on the orders of Prabowo.

These blunders in the form of statements from government officials cannot be separated from the Prabowo government’s style of communication and management. His statements, which are often unexpected, lead to public controversy. Poor communication could also be caused by Prabowo’s lack of understanding of problems on the ground. His chair in the palace is separated by a high wall from the real problems that people face. What is more, reportedly he does not give equal access to all members of his large cabinet.

Prabowo, for example, views the turmoil in the capital markets over the last two weeks as not a problem, “as long as food supplies are maintained.” It is as if he does not understand that the success of modern economies is not only measured by the activity of people shopping for basic necessities in markets. The capital markets involve at least 15.8 million investors from various groups. They also reflect the level of trust of global investors in a government. Downplaying the market turmoil could be seen as issuing a challenge to the markets.

The President needs to immediately consolidate his cabinet. The economic crisis staring us in the face can only be addressed by a cabinet that understands the problems and is on the same frequency, not by a cabinet made up of individual ministers who say what they please. Of course, improvements to communication and management must begin with the man at the top: President Prabowo himself.

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