Prabowo Floats Amnesty for SOE Leaders Who 'Repent' After Wrongdoing

August 14, 2026 | 02:14 pm

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Indonesian president Prabowo Subianto has proposed creating a special ad hoc court to investigate alleged legal violations by executives of Indonesia’s state-owned enterprises (SOEs), including those who served in the past three decades.

He also floated the possibility of granting amnesty to former or current SOE executives who acknowledge wrongdoing and “repent,” saying any such decision would require approval from the House of Representatives (DPR).

Prabowo made the proposals during his state address at the Annual Session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) in Jakarta on Friday, August 14, 2026.

Prabowo Proposes 30-Year Review

Prabowo said the proposed court could investigate SOE directors who have served over the past 30 years.

“Perhaps we need to establish a special ad hoc court to investigate directors who have served over the past 30 years,” he said.

He argued that governance problems had allowed some state-owned companies to operate without sufficient accountability, including companies he said had misrepresented their financial performance.

“Some SOEs sometimes operate as they please. They are not accountable to the nation and the state,” Prabowo said.

He said the government needed to clean up poor governance and dishonesty within state-owned companies.

Amnesty for Executives Who Admit Wrongdoing

Alongside the proposed legal review, Prabowo said executives who acknowledge their past wrongdoing could be given an opportunity to receive special amnesty.

“I will ask, if necessary, that we also provide some kind of special amnesty for those who repent, those who realize [their mistakes], those who admit [what they have done]. I will leave this to the people's representatives to decide,” he said.

Prabowo acknowledged that he could not grant such an amnesty on his own and that the proposal would require parliamentary approval.

He said his administration had received numerous reports about alleged misconduct involving BUMNs, without detailing the cases.

“If I report all of them, I am afraid our people will become angry with everyone,” said Prabowo, a former defense minister.

SOE Restructuring

The proposed investigation and amnesty scheme comes alongside Prabowo's broader plan to restructure Indonesia's state-owned sector.

Prabowo has said the government is seeking to reduce the number of SOEs and their corporate layers, arguing that too many state-owned companies are unproductive.

In his address, he said the government had identified 1,074 SOEs, including subsidiaries and further layers of companies, and was seeking to reduce the number to around 300 to 400.

The restructuring, he said, is intended to retain companies that are productive and provide value to the public while addressing companies deemed inefficient or unproductive.

Prabowo is scheduled to deliver a second speech to parliament later on Friday, when he will present the government's 2027 state budget proposal and its financial note.

The speeches are part of Indonesia's annual parliamentary sessions ahead of the country's 81st Independence Day on August 17.

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