Waiting for More Dialogue from President Prabowo

Since the beginning of Prabowo Subianto's administration, several policies implemented have stirred public discourse. These policies appear to have been crafted while turning a blind eye to the public. A series of protests have marked the first five months of his administration.

The revision of the TNI Law is one of the most heated examples. Its drafting seemed rushed and conducted in secrecy. Moreover, the meeting to discuss the revision points was once held by the government and the DPR in a luxury hotel, a private space, rather than in the DPR building, which serves as the office of the people's representatives.

Since its approval by the DPR on March 20, 2025, President Prabowo has only recently responded to the regulation during a meeting with several media leaders at his private residence in Hambalang, Bogor Regency, West Java, on Sunday (6/4/2025).

According to him, the urgency of the revision is related to the stagnation in the career progression of TNI officers. He considers the crucial aspect of the revision points to be more about the extension of the retirement age. Regarding the potential dual function of TNI, he denied it, stating that the designated positions are limited to matters of intelligence, disaster management, and military law.

The Head of the Department of Politics and Social Change at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), Arya Fernandes, confirmed that there is currently a surplus of high-ranking officers within the TNI organization. However, public affairs should be given more prominence. Moreover, public attention is focused on the legislative process, which seems to be concealed from the public.

"This issue concerns transparency. The problem of transparency ranges from public access to the inventory list of issues to academic manuscripts. If these cannot be accessed by the public, how can it be called transparent?" said Arya, when contacted on Monday (7/4/2025).

Moreover, the legislative process was carried out so swiftly. It was only discussed in the DPR on February 18, 2025, and approved for enactment in a Plenary Session on March 20, 2025, taking only about a month. Indeed, there were representatives of the community involved in the discussions. However, that involvement also occurred following pressure. The voices of civil society seemed to be ignored in the regulatory drafting process.

When the regulatory process was questioned by the public, Prabowo answered that the matter should be handed over to the opposition party. Unfortunately, the PDI-P, which is the only party outside the government, seems to have lost its voice. In fact, the chairman of the regulatory working committee is led by a PDI-P cadre.

"As an opposition, PDI-P seems to have no teeth. Even though it became the chairman of the working committee, it had no impact whatsoever. The impression is that it accelerated things. There could be certain deals," said Arya.

There is already minimal transparency, and the voice of the people is not represented. This situation is what sparked public irritation. The result was born into demonstrations in various regions. From day to day, the streets are filled with demonstrations rejecting the revision of the regulation by civil society.

In the current situation, said Arya, the government can no longer play "cat and mouse" with its people. The current era is an era of openness of information. Especially if the matter is the formulation of public policies that will have a direct impact on society. This is in line with the spirit of democracy which makes openness one of its indicators.

"As long as there is something covered up, there will always be public resistance. And, that will influence the occurrence of distrust towards the government if this problem is allowed to drag on," Arya stressed.

Unfortunately, repressive actions by the authorities were often found in a series of demonstrations. Reports of violent acts were broadcasted repeatedly through social media accounts of civil society movements. The incidents actually became the driving force for the masses to continue to voice their aspirations.

Regarding repression, according to Arya, it should be avoided as much as possible by the security forces. Because, demonstrating is part of democracy. In fact, the government should protect freedom of speech by its people.

"The government and apparatus' task is to ensure that riots do not occur during demonstrations. If riots occur, they must be resolved in a humane manner," said Arya.

However, he appreciated the President's decision to finally meet with a number of media leaders to answer a series of questions related to his government. It showed the President's open attitude to communicating it. However, it must be admitted, the momentum was too late considering that various controversial policies had already been taken.

Meanwhile, Senior Researcher of the Center for Political Research, National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) Firman Noor saw the answers given by the President during the interview as normative. The answers were limited to calming the people that the things they feared would not happen.

Unfortunately, this kind of approach does not apply to civil society which is critical and actively views government policies objectively.

"For example, regarding the TNI Law, for pro-democracy and anti-militarism communities, what Prabowo says will not be swallowed. They consider what is conveyed to the public may not necessarily happen in reality," said Firman.

In the current situation, said Firman, the government actually needs two-way communication styles. It cannot just involve a handful of people to provide one-sided explanations. The President should conduct dialogue with figures representing many segments.

The more dialogue, continued Firman, the more the government will show its support for democracy. Of course, dialogue must be carried out seriously, measured, and prioritize public interests. If so, the resulting policies will also truly represent the people.

"This goes back to Mr. Prabowo. As President, he should be more open because he is aware that under him are only obedient people who carry out whatever has been agreed upon by the elite. There is no discussion," said Firman.

The meeting between the President and media leaders brought a little fresh air. Moreover, throughout the discussion, the head of state admitted that he would receive a number of inputs concerning the public's livelihood. However, whatever it is, the people need more than just promises. They cannot just listen to "omon-omon" that just evaporates.