Prabowo's Inappropriate Maneuvering of BIN "Endorse": Gerindra is Happy, Nasdem-Democrats Are Inflamed

Signals of electoral support ahead of the 2024 elections are getting wilder. Most recently, the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) intervened in this matter after the Head of BIN Budi Gunawan said the Minister of Defense (Menhan) Prabowo Subianto had received some aura from President Joko Widodo. 

This statement was made by Budi at the inauguration ceremony for the Papua Youth Creative Hub in Jayapura on Tuesday (21/3/2023). Budi alluded to how Prabowo has been spending more time with President Jokowi lately. 

"Pak Prabowo has also stated several times that Pak Jokowi is his teacher, his teacher," said Budi Gunawan, as quoted from the video documentation from Prabowo's team. 

At the same event, Prabowo sat next to Jokowi. 

"In the end today we find both of them here. All of them are starting to see an aura, some of Pak Jokowi's aura has moved to Pak Prabowo," Budi Gunawan said, which was greeted with boisterous laughter and applause from the audience. 

Jokowi, as President, actually laughed so hard that his shoulders shook lightly. 

Meanwhile, Prabowo spontaneously clasped his hands together and made a gesture like praying towards Jokowi. 

Budi Gunawan then prayed that Prabowo would always be healthy and successful in facing the 2024 elections. 

This is not the first time Budi Gunawan, in his capacity as Head of BIN, has interfered in electoral matters with Prabowo. 

He conveyed the same thing when giving a speech at the inauguration of the Nusantara Student Dormitory in Surabaya, East Java, on 29 November 2022. 

At that time, Budi Gunawan alluded that Prabowo was close to the physical characteristics of a leader that fit Jokowi's criteria, having wrinkles on his face which were considered evidence of "thinking about the people". 

"We all caught the message, the message from Pak Jokowi about wrinkles on the forehead to be a criterion for (future leaders)," Budi Gunawan said at the time, as reported by the Presidential Secretariat's YouTube broadcast. 

"So we all paid attention, all of the earlier wrinkles were 100 percent identical to Pak Prabowo's at this time. It's just the hair color that needs adjustment, sir," he continued, alluding to Jokowi's statement that the criteria for his successor was white hair. 

"We pray that he will find a good path, good advice from Pak Jokowi to be even more brilliant in the future," added Budi Gunawan. 

So far, Prabowo has not been declared a presidential candidate by any political party except Gerindra. 

However, it's hard to deny that the former Danjen Kopassus will try his luck for the third time in a row in 2024 considering his electability, which is still in the top three. 

Inappropriate maneuver

Budi Gunawan was considered to have crossed the line because he implied political support for Prabowo. 

This statement is considered out of the corridor of BIN's duties and authorities as stipulated in the legislation. 

Not only is BIN required to work quietly, but as a state institution, BIN is supposed to be neutral in practical political matters such as the TNI, Polri and KPU. 

"If delivered in his capacity as Head of BIN, in my opinion the statement is actually offside," said military observer from the Institute for Security and Strategic Studies (ISESS) Khairul Fahmi to Kompas.com, Friday (24/3/2023). 

As Head of BIN, said Fahmi, Budi Gunawan has a responsibility to participate in monitoring various issues related to political dynamics. 

However, all BIN products are only required to be submitted to the President, not to become a public statement. This is because BIN's client is the president, not the general public. 

"Even if BIN has to speak in front of the public, it should be related to matters that are mitigation or early warning in nature," said Fahmi. 

According to Fahmi, it is difficult not to relate Budi's statement to his role as part of the intelligence community which has the capacity to carry out propaganda, fundraising, forming perceptions, and counterintelligence. 

"This can also be seen as worsening the image of Indonesian democracy by giving the impression that intelligence is involved in influencing the perceptions of potential voters," said Fahmi. 

"I think Pak Budi Gunawan should also be more careful and understand that he doesn't have to take part in speaking out on this issue," said Fahmi. 

From a political point of view, Paramadina University analyst Ahmad Khoirul Umam thinks that BIN's statement is normal if it is interpreted as a tendency to support Prabowo. 

"Budi Gunawan is trying to maneuver ahead of the upcoming 2024 election. Budi Gunawan's statement indicates a tendency to support Prabowo as a symbol of the continuity of Jokowi's government," Ahmad told Kompas.com, Saturday (25/3/2023). 

According to Ahmad, Budi Gunawan's statement was a bridging move towards forming a coalition between two political parties, namely the PDI-P and the Gerindra Party. 

Budi Gunawan was an aide to PDI-P Chairperson Megawati Soekarnoputri, when Megawati was still president. 

Gerindra is excited, the opposition political parties are inflamed

Related to this, the political parties that form the axis of the opposition in the 2024 elections are inflamed. The chairman of the DPP Nasdem Party Willy Aditya asked Budi Gunawan to know himself. 

"Everyone is bound by the institution he represents, so that people are aware of the position that every position must be value-free," Willy told reporters, Wednesday (22/3/2023). 

Willy makes sense of one's political references or choices. However, as a public official, it would be better for Budi Gunawan to know his position and refrain from commenting. 

"Each citizen has legitimate references, but what is not permissible is how to get involved in this trend (for presidential candidates)," said Willy. 

Meanwhile, the coordinator of the Democratic Party spokesperson, Herzaky Mahendra Putra, thinks that all citizens have the right to become a presidential candidate without getting the support of the president in power. 

This is because the constitution has given the mandate to appoint presidential and vice presidential candidates to be determined by political parties, not the will of the previous president. 

"There should be no attempt to block, let alone try to seize political parties that are advancing candidates for president and vice president that are not in accordance with the wishes of certain parties," said Herzaky. 

In this condition, only Gerindra is happy even though Budi's statement is full of problems. 

Daily Chairperson of DPP Gerindra Sufmi Dasco admitted that his party understands various political gestures along with compliments which are seen as support from figures for Prabowo to run for president in the 2024 election. 

"Of course we need to be grateful for this phenomenon as a good sign that all of us will achieve our goals, namely making Pak Prabowo president," said Dasco. 

"But the most important thing is that we don't get complacent, let alone get arrogant with these dynamics," added Dasco.