Why Are More and More TNI Members Holding Civilian Positions?

Who are the TNI soldiers who hold civilian positions?

The appointment of Major General Novi Helmy Prasetya as President Director of Perum Bulog by Minister of State-Owned Enterprises Erick Thohir adds to the number of active TNI soldiers filling civilian positions.

Novi replaces Wahyu Suparyono, who previously served as president director since September 10, 2024, or served less than five months.

Before Novi, a number of positions in various ministries have also been filled by active TNI soldiers, including Major General Maryono as Inspector General of the Ministry of Transportation, Major General Irham Waroihan as Inspector General of the Ministry of Agriculture, and First Admiral Ian Heriyawan at the Hajj Organizing Agency. The three were appointed by TNI Commander General Agus Subiyanto through the Decree of the TNI Commander 1545/XII/2024, December 2024.

Why is the placement of TNI soldiers in a number of civilian positions considered to violate the law?

Referring to Article 47 Paragraph (1) of the TNI Law, soldiers can only occupy civilian positions after resigning or retiring from active military service. Then, Article 47 Paragraph (2) of the TNI Law opens up space for placing active soldiers in civilian positions, but is only limited to 10 ministries/institutions.

The ten agencies in question are the office in charge of coordinating the fields of state politics and security, state defense, the President's Military Secretary, State Intelligence, State Cryptography, National Resilience Institute, National Defense Council, National Search and Rescue (SAR), National Narcotics, and the Supreme Court.

If we refer to the regulation, it means that the civilian positions currently filled by active soldiers, such as the Director of Bulog, Inspector General of the Ministry of Transportation, Inspector General of the Ministry of Agriculture, and positions in the Hajj Organizing Agency, are not in line with the mandate of the TNI Law.

TNI Commander 2002-2006 Endriartono Sutarto said, the prohibition for active TNI soldiers to serve in positions outside those specified in the TNI Law was the nation's determination during the 1998 Reformation to eliminate the TNI's function in practical political roles. However, the dynamics of national and state life continue to develop which gives rise to the need to place active TNI soldiers in certain positions outside those stated in the TNI Law.

"It is possible. However, as a country of law, it would be better if it was done after the legal regulations were adjusted first," said Endriartono.

Why are more and more TNI members occupying civilian positions?

One of them is suspected to be due to the accumulation of middle-level officers in the TNI. This condition is a problem because the formation of territorial structures or new positions is very limited. This is also suspected to be the basis for the plan to revise the TNI Law which will expand civilian positions that can be filled by TNI soldiers, last year.

However, according to the Governor of Lemhannas 2016-2022 and also a member of the TNI reform formulation team, Agus Widjojo, the problem of accumulation is thought to have arisen due to inappropriate personnel development.

Therefore, according to Agus, what needs to be done is to project TNI personnel who will reach the rank of high-ranking officers, then compare it with the number of graduates of the Military Academy. Every year, the Military Academy produces an average of 300 officers with the rank of second lieutenant.

What does the revised TNI Law regarding the expansion of civilian positions for the military sound like?

Based on the draft revision of the TNI Law, the provisions of Article 47 Paragraph (2) state that active soldiers can hold positions in offices that oversee the coordination of national politics and security, national defense, presidential military secretary, state intelligence, state codes, the National Resilience Institute, the National Defense Council, National Search and Rescue (SAR), the National Narcotics Agency, and the Supreme Court, as well as other ministries/institutions that require the manpower and expertise of active soldiers in accordance with presidential policy.

When compared to the wording of the article before the proposed changes, there is an additional phrase "as well as other ministries/institutions that require the manpower and expertise of active soldiers in accordance with the President's policy". Then, TNI soldiers who hold civilian positions are still based on the needs of ministries and government agencies.

The revision of the TNI Law has been agreed to be a draft law (RUU) proposed by the DPR in the DPR Plenary Meeting, Tuesday (28/5/2024).

However, the revision plan has been criticized by academics and civil society. One of them, as conveyed by the Institute for Security and Strategic Studies (Isess) researcher, Khairul Fahmi. According to him, the absence of clear limits on ministries/institutions that can be filled by active soldiers in the draft revision of the TNI Law has the potential to further strengthen concerns about the revival of ABRI's dual function.

Through the regulation, several ministries that have no connection with the TNI can employ active soldiers. This opens up space for the government to "make up" positions for soldiers.

How is the progress of the revision of the TNI Law?

The revision of the TNI Law is one of the planned regulations that the DPR decided to continue discussing in the 2024-2029 period. At the end of October, the Chairman of the DPR Legislation Body (Baleg) from the Gerindra Party Faction, Bob Hasan, stated that the discussion would be continued soon.

Deputy Chairman of Commission I of the House of Representatives from the Golkar Party Faction Dave Laksono did not rule out the possibility of the TNI Bill being discussed from the beginning. This is because the TNI Bill needs adjustments so that the discussion must be repeated. According to Dave, Commission I must ensure that there are no words, verses, and articles that give rise to double or multiple interpretations.

"Because in cool language, the devil is in the detail, it's the details that are dangerous if you're not careful," he said.

However, until now, there has been no further development regarding the revision of the TNI Law.