September 4, 2023
JAKARTA – Former top members of the Indonesian Military (TNI) have thrown their support behind presidential candidates for the 2024 election, highlighting the strategic roles that powerful military figures play in Indonesian politics.
While political elites are currently scrambling to build coalitions in an attempt to find the winning pair for next year’s election, former TNI top brass have been selecting which front-runner to support.
Former TNI commander Andika Perkasa, for instance, has joined a list of potential figures to lead the campaign team of Ganjar Pranowo, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) presidential nominee. Andika, the son-in-law of former State Intelligence Agency (BIN) chief A.M. Hendropriyono, was also tapped as the strongest vice presidential candidate from the military, along with Democratic Party chairman Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, who quit the army to enter politics.