TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - In the living room of the Merdeka Palace in Central Jakarta, adorned with blue curtains and carpets, President Prabowo Subianto welcomed Chair of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), Megawati Soekarnoputri. Sitting side by side on a cream-colored sofa, the two political elites—who once ran together in the 2009 presidential election—chatted about food and geopolitical issues for two hours on Thursday, March 19, 2026.
Also present were Gerindra Party Executive Chair Sufmi Dasco Ahmad and PDI-P Chair as well as Megawati’s daughter, Puan Maharani. Since the presidential inauguration in October 2024, it was the third meeting between Prabowo and Megawati, after their last encounter when the President gathered party leaders amid protests demanding the dissolution of the House of Representatives (DPR) in August 2025.
Prabowo opened the conversation by recalling the anchovy fried rice Megawati had specially cooked for him in July 2019. He said he missed the dish. Megawati, meanwhile, spoke about receiving an honorary doctorate from Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in early February 2026.
Dasco said the meeting took place in a relaxed atmosphere. The attendees did not touch on the national political dynamics facing Prabowo’s administration. “Both sides agreed to maintain their relationship,” the Deputy House Speaker told Tempo via text message on Thursday, April 2, 2026.
PDI-P's Two-Faced Politics
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PDI-P is playing dual-track politics with the Prabowo Subianto administration. It is time for a firm stance.
