The vice president of Indonesia submitted his resignation to Parliament on Thursday, succumbing to a scandal about his academic credentials and injecting new political uncertainty in Southeast Asia’s largest economy.
Gibran Rakabuming Raka was elected as Indonesia’s youngest vice president in 2024, in a precipitous rise. He was a symbol of the partnership between his father, the outgoing president, Joko Widodo, and the incoming leader, Prabowo Subianto, that elevated Mr. Prabowo into office.
“The relationship has clearly fractured,” said Yoes C. Kenawas, a political analyst at the Indonesian Survey Institute. With Mr. Gibran’s departure, “Prabowo is attempting to demonstrate that he has stepped out from Jokowi’s shadow,” he added, referring to the former leader by his nickname.
Initially a political outsider, Mr. Joko came to be seen as a transformative leader of Indonesia. He helped rehabilitate the image of Mr. Prabowo, a former special forces commander who was discharged from the military for his involvement in the abduction and torture of pro-democracy activists under the dictator Suharto. To many, Mr. Prabowo was a reminder of the country’s authoritarian past. But Mr. Joko endorsed Mr. Prabowo as his successor, with Mr. Gibran running on the same ticket.
The alliance between Mr. Joko and Mr. Prabowo was cast as one of political continuity. Many voters had seen Mr. Gibran’s vice presidency as a way for Mr. Joko to continue his political influence.
“From the beginning, Gibran was brought on board solely to serve as a ‘vote-getter,’ rather than as an integral part of a unified leadership team intended to strengthen the performance of the Prabowo administration,” said Titi Anggraini, a lecturer of constitutional law at University of Indonesia.
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Extracted and lightly reformatted for readability. · Source: pt