February 14, 2026 | 09:46 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Prabowo Subianto jokingly remarked that he fears Indonesian bureaucrats more than the mythical Kuntilanak ghost. He shared this sentiment during his keynote speech at the Indonesia Economic Outlook 2026 event.
Initially, the head of state called for the elimination of deceitful practices, including corruption, across the archipelago. According to him, eradicating the culture of deceit must be pursued alongside bureaucratic reform.
Prabowo then referenced a statement he attributed to the British Prime Minister during World War II, Winston Churchill. "Someone told me that Winston Churchill once said, 'I'm more afraid of my bureaucrats than I'm afraid of Adolf Hitler.' He said, but we do not know whether he actually said that or not. But the spirit is like that," Prabowo stated at the Wisma Danantara Indonesia Auditorium in South Jakarta on Friday, February 13, 2026.
He then admitted to sharing a similar perspective. He even joked by altering the quote. "If I may change it, I'd say, I'm more afraid of my bureaucrats than I'm afraid of whoever, Kuntilanak or something like that," the former Minister of Defense said.
He emphasized that Indonesia must rebuild itself by forging a "New Indonesia." "So, we have to clean up, we have to have the new Indonesia; the new Indonesia must not have any corruption," Prabowo asserted.
During the event, Prabowo also noted that Indonesian society is adept at circumventing regulations. He even acknowledged that such practices are frequently carried out by entrepreneurs.
Prabowo recounted meeting with several entrepreneurs from the Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) at his private residence in Hambalang, Bogor, West Java, on Monday night, February 9, 2026.
A day later, Prabowo met with five Indonesian conglomerates: Prajogo Pangestu (Barito Pacific Group), Anthony Salim (Salim Group), Franky Widjaja (Sinar Mas Group), Garibaldi "Boy" Thohir (Adaro Energy), and Sugianto Kusuma, also known as Aguan (Agung Sedayu Group).
"I gathered the entrepreneurs, most of whom are my friends, and I said, 'Enough. You are already big, already rich. Obey the rules. You are smart,'" Prabowo recounted.
The Gerindra Party Chair acknowledged that Indonesians are indeed intelligent. However, he argued that the issue lies in the fact that this intelligence is sometimes misused. "In Indonesia, smart people are smart at finding ways to bypass regulations. Right? This is what we learn from school," Prabowo said.
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