TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Prabowo Subianto defended his decision to involve law enforcement and military personnel in the agricultural sector. He requested that the deployment of the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) and the National Police (Polri) no longer be questioned.
The Gerindra Party chairperson urged the public to stop second-guessing his policy. "There is no need to overthink it, asking 'What is this? What procedure is this, why is the military out in the fields? Why are the police planting corn?'" Prabowo said during a harvest festival with the TNI at Abdul Rachman Saleh Air Base in Malang, East Java, on Friday, July 17, 2026, as reported by the Presidential Secretariat.
Prabowo maintained that mobilizing the TNI and Polri into farming is for Indonesia's food security. He stated that both the police and the military have a role in solving public issues, including food security matters.
He noted that security forces in Indonesia cannot be compared directly with the police or military of other countries. In Indonesia, he stressed, the TNI and Polri belong entirely to the people. "We must overcome the people's difficulties, the TNI and Polri must address these hardships. In other countries, it is your business," he said.
The former defense minister also cautioned external observers against over-commenting on domestic TNI and Polri policies. "Do not interfere too much in our affairs, alright? You don't pity us either," he remarked.
This week, Prabowo launched simultaneous harvest festivals for sugarcane, soybeans, and rice across 43 locations nationwide. The initiative forms a core component of the government's food security program, drawing active participation from the Army, Navy, and Air Force.
In his address, Prabowo commended the integrated harvest festival organized by the military. To Prabowo, these activities demonstrate that ensuring food security is not solely the domain of the Ministry of Agriculture, but a national movement leveraging the collective strength of the country.
"I deeply appreciate the spirit of unity, collaboration, and mutual cooperation by all components of the nation," Prabowo said.
During the event, Prabowo also emphasized that farmers must be able to live prosperously with high incomes. He hailed farmers and fishermen as the true heroes who sustain the population by providing essential staple foods. "Thank you to Indonesia's farmers and fishermen, you are the real heroes who produce food for us all," Prabowo concluded.
Ervana Trikarinaputri contributed to this article.
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