The revocation of a CNN Indonesia reporter’s press ID card at the State Palace is not an isolated bureaucratic misstep. It is part of a troubling continuum in Indonesia’s democratic history—where governments, regardless of era, find ways to discipline the press when it dares to question power.

The United Development Party (PPP) once stood as the political home of Indonesia’s Muslim middle ground. Today, however, it is a house divided. The party’s 10th Congress (Muktamar) in late September did not deliver the long-awaited unity after PPP’s humiliating failure to clear the parliamentary threshold in the 2024 election. Instead, it ended with two rival claims to the chairmanship: Muhammad Mardiono and Agus Suparmanto.

The sudden emergence of two different police reform teams—one appointed by the President and another formed internally by the National Police—may appear at first as bureaucratic redundancy. In reality, it reflects a deeper political compromise: a struggle over trust, legitimacy, and control in the reform of one of Indonesia’s most powerful yet most distrusted institutions.

When rumors swirled that Mahfud MD would return as Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs (Menko Polhukam) under President Prabowo Subianto, many found the speculation plausible. A respected legal scholar, former Constitutional Court chief justice, and Jokowi’s minister, Mahfud carried the reputation of a reformist who could lend moral legitimacy to a new administration often criticized as transactional. Yet, instead of reentering the cabinet, Mahfud chose a different path: declining the offer and joining the Police Reform Commission, a role outside the formal circle of power.

Within the span of a week, hundreds of Indonesian students have fallen sick from food poisoning caused by the government-led free nutritious meal (MBG) program. Small insects and caterpillars were reportedly found in their food, raising questions about the program’s safety measures. Meanwhile, President Prabowo Subianto stayed at a luxury hotel in New York and attended the UN’s High-Level International Conference to extend support for the Israel-Palestine two-state solution.

With the alarming number of food poisoning incidents, the government is urged to put a temporary halt to the free nutritious meals (MBG) program. Too many children have become victims, and many people, including the Child Protection Commission (KPAI), agree that a major overhaul is more than necessary for the program before it completely turns into a disastrous mess.

The recent transformation of the Presidential Communication Office (PCO) into the Government Communication Agency (BKP) is more than a bureaucratic reshuffle. It is a revealing case of how communication, politics, and patronage intersect in Indonesia’s corridors of power. The change did not only affect institutional nomenclature; it also involved the repositioning of Hasan Nasbi, the PCO’s first chief, who was appointed commissioner of state oil giant Pertamina days before being formally replaced.

The National Nutrition Agency (BGN) claimed that 8,334 SPPG kitchens have been established as of September 2025, fully funded by the community. An addition of 1,542 kitchens with a Rp 6 trillion budget will also be prepared in coordination with the Ministry of Public Works and the Ministry of Home Affairs. On the other hand, reports said that at least 5,000 SPPG kitchens were found to be nonexistent even though they have been officially registered on the BGN’s website. How could something like this happen?

When the Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs (Komdigi) introduced the Sistem Kepatuhan Moderasi Konten (SAMAN), it marked a turning point in Indonesia’s digital governance. Jakarta is no longer leaving online order to the goodwill of global tech companies. SAMAN centralizes government notices on “negative content” and enforces strict deadlines—four hours for urgent takedowns and twenty-four hours for the rest. Failure to comply may result in administrative fines, payable directly through SIMPONI, the state’s non-tax revenue system.

Amid the turbulent sociopolitical condition in Indonesia, there are two important issues that have been receiving more public attention. One is about the KPU’s controversial decision regarding the confidentiality of presidential candidates’ documents, while the other one is about the deployment of military forces in parliamentary buildings. It might seem like the two issues are not related to each other, but if we look closely, both could indicate democratic backsliding.