PORTFOLIO PRIORITIES
The portfolios Prabowo chose to change offer the strongest indication of his priorities, observers said.
Nearly two years into his presidency, Prabowo has had enough time to assess which officials he wants around him and which institutions he wants to be led by people he knows and trusts, said Hari Fitrianto, a political lecturer at Surabaya’s Airlangga University.
“I think the positions being reshuffled are those that are central to Prabowo’s focus, for example, those that concern political stability,” he said.
Among them are the police and domestic security, human development and social programmes, foreign policy, industry, resource downstreaming and energy.
Wawan from the University of Gadjah Mada singled out the coordinating ministry for human development and culture as especially important.
The ministry oversees numerous ministries and agencies responsible for basic public services, including health and education.
That gives its coordinating minister considerable influence over highly visible government programmes that directly could affect voters, Wawan said.
“The portfolio has very high potential to strengthen a president’s popularity because it coordinates ministries that interact directly with the people,” he said.
That makes it logical for Prabowo to want the ministry under Sugiono, 47, who has often been described as Prabowo’s ideological child, Wawan added.
However, the foreign ministry presents almost the reverse case.
Instead of replacing Sugiono with another political loyalist, Prabowo promoted Arrmanatha, widely known as Tata, from deputy foreign minister.
Wawan said the geopolitical environment made a career diplomat like Arrmanatha particularly suited to the job.
“In the current geopolitical situation … it is much better if it is handled by someone with a long diplomatic career,” he said.
Indonesia needs an experienced diplomatic face in international negotiations, while promoting someone from inside the foreign ministry could also help rebuild confidence within the institution, Wawan added.
Nicky from CSIS agreed, adding that the appointment indicated a change in Prabowo’s thinking.
“With the global geopolitical situation unsettled, the foreign ministry needed a technocrat, rather than an ideological ally or political loyalist,” said Nicky.
On Arrmanatha’s appointment, Hari from the University of Airlangga said that Prabowo appears to be differentiating between positions where political trust and control carry particular weight and those where specialised expertise and institutional credibility are harder to substitute.
Indonesia’s security is another priority for Prabowo, experts noted.
Dudung, a former army chief, now coordinates political and security affairs, while Suyudi takes control of the national police.
Wawan said Dudung and Suyudi’s appointments as coordinating minister for political and security affairs and police chief respectively could reflect the administration’s desire to respond more firmly to domestic political and security issues, including ongoing violence in Papua, as well as preparations for the 2029 electoral cycle.
Listyo had served as police chief for more than five years, as the 57-year-old was appointed in 2021 by then-president Jokowi.
“There could indeed be a need for renewal,” Wawan said, noting that periodic changes at the top of an institution such as the police could also help prevent entrenched internal cliques from developing.
