PDI-P’s Megawati orders party leaders to withdraw from Prabowo’s retreat after her close aide’s corruption arrest

JAKARTA: All leaders of Indonesia’s largest party - Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) - have been ordered to withdraw from President Prabowo Subianto’s retreat by PDI-P chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri. 

Megawati gave the directive hours after the arrest of her close aide Hasto Kristiyanto on graft charges. 

“All regional leaders and deputies are instructed to postpone their trips to the retreat in Magelang (in Central Java), scheduled Feb 21-28, 2025.

"Those already en route must halt their journey and await further instructions,” said the circular signed by Megawati distributed on Thursday (Feb 20), as quoted by local news agency Jakarta Globe. 

In her directive, Megawati also instructed PDI-P’s elected officials to remain on standby and keep their communication devices active. 

All elected local leaders, sworn in on Thursday, were scheduled to attend a brainstorming retreat at a military academy in Magelang, alongside Prabowo and other key figures. 

The same retreat was organised for his Cabinet ministers after they were inaugurated in late October last year. 

Among those scheduled to attend the retreat was PDI-P’s Pramono Anung - Jakarta’s newly elected governor. As of Friday morning, Pramono has not left his home, according to local news outlet Tempo. 

Earlier on Thursday, KPK formally arrested PDI-P secretary-general Hasto, charging him with bribing an election official and obstructing justice. 

Prior to Hasto’s arrest, former president Megawati had reminded both Pramono and his deputy Rano Karno to follow and comply with directives instructed by Prabowo. 

“Earlier, Madam Megawati underscored that a governor also serves as a representative of the central government. For this reason, she urged us to not ignore the president’s instructions,” Rano told the media at Pramono’s residence in South Jakarta on Thursday. 

Hasto was arrested on Thursday evening, following an interrogation session with the authorities at the anti-graft agency’s headquarters in Jakarta, reported The Jakarta Post.

“The exact reason behind the arrest is entirely a matter for the investigators but they must have had concerns that the suspect would escape or destroy evidence,” said KPK chair Setyo Budiyanto, claiming that Hasto’s arrest would help the graft busters in the investigation into the case.

Hundreds of Hasto’s sympathisers held a protest in front of the KPK building when he arrived for questioning. 

At about 6pm on Thursday, Hasto was then presented in a press conference in the building while handcuffed and wearing the orange vest, assigned for detainees of the country’s anti-corruption agency. 

Before entering the KPK building for the interrogation, Hasto had told reporters that he was “physically and mentally ready” if he were to be arrested that day. The arrest, he added, would serve as a catalyst for wider efforts to address Indonesia’s democracy and law enforcement system. 

“As long as there is an abuse of power, I believe that the democratic seeds to correct it will continue to grow,” the senior politician who has served as PDI-P secretary-general for over a decade said, as quoted by Jakarta Post. 

PDI-P had claimed that Hasto was targeted by the country’s anti-graft agency for his criticisms of former president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo in last February’s presidential election, which the KPK has denied. 

Among other things, Hasto criticised a Constitutional Court ruling that allowed Jokowi’s son Gibran Rakabuming Raka to run for vice-president, pairing with Prabowo.

Megawati’s PDI-P party is the country’s largest party in parliament and the only major party that has not joined President Prabowo’s Advance Indonesia Coalition. It had earlier claimed that the timing of the probe on its secretary-general was politically motivated.

The rift between PDI-P and Widodo is well-documented, with the party officially expelling him, Gibran and Widodo’s son-in-law Bobby Nasution in December last year for backing Prabowo in the presidential elections. 

Hasto was officially named a suspect last December in the bribery of former General Elections Commission commissioner Wahyu Setiawan from 2017 to 2022, reported news portal Jakarta Globe.

Hasto allegedly helped former PDI-P member Harun Masiku secure a seat in the House of Representatives that was vacated after its lawmaker-elect died in March 2019.

Hasto, Harun and two alleged co-conspirators were accused of bribing Wahyu and a former official of the General Election Supervisory Agency (Bawaslu) with S$19,000 (US$14226) and US$38,350 between Dec 16 and 23, 2019, KPK chair Setyo Budiyanto said at a press conference on Dec 24. 

Hasto was first questioned as a witness in Harun’s corruption case in June last year when KPK was gathering evidence on individuals suspected of helping Harun evade the law.