Prabowo Subianto and Gibran Rakabuming Raka officially begin their term as President and Vice President of the Republic of Indonesia, respectively, following a grand inauguration ceremony and the announcement of the cabinet.
On Sunday, the 20th of October, General (Ret.) Prabowo Subianto was officially inaugurated as the eighth President of the Republic of Indonesia, alongside Gibran Rakabuming Raka as his Vice President. Their inauguration took place during a Plenary Session of the People’s Consultative Assembly (Majelis Permusyawaratan Rakyat or MPR) at the Nusantara Building in Jakarta. The ceremony began with the national anthem, “Indonesia Raya”, and a moment of silence, led by the Chairman of the MPR, Ahmad Muzani.
Subianto and Raka solemnly took their oaths of office, witnessed by high-ranking officials and representatives from friendly nations. Following the oath-taking, both signed the official inauguration documents, which were then presented by the MPR leadership. In a brief speech, Subianto expressed gratitude for the support and presence of the guests, referring to the occasion as a symbol of Indonesia’s constitutional sovereignty.
After the inauguration, Subianto announced the structure of his cabinet, which he named the Red and White Cabinet (Kabinet Merah Putih), in a ceremony held at Merdeka Palace later that evening. The cabinet consists of 48 ministers, five ministerial-level officials, and 59 deputy ministers. Prabowo scheduled the ministers’ inauguration for Monday, the 21st of October, at 10 AM local time at Istana Negara, Jakarta.
Subianto’s extensive career in the military and politics has led him to the highest office in government. Born on the 17th of October, 1951, Subianto was educated in various countries, including Malaysia, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. After graduating from the Military Academy in Magelang, he began his career in the Indonesian Army in 1976, serving for 28 years. In addition to his military service, Subianto is also known as a politician and a businessman, having played a key role in founding the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Partai Gerakan Indonesia Raya or Gerindra) in 2008, which later nominated him as a presidential candidate for the first time.
After several unsuccessful bids for the presidency, Subianto finally won the 2024 general election, defeating two other pairs of candidates: Anies Baswedan-Cak Imin and Ganjar Pranowo-Mahfud MD. At 73 years of age, Subianto is the oldest man who has ever been elected as president in Indonesian history.