Indonesia Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka Resigns Amid Credentials Dispute

Indonesia’s vice president, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, handed his resignation to parliament on Thursday, ending days of speculation about his political future. His father, former President Joko Widodo, spoke up for President Prabowo Subianto on the same day, in a move that could ease strain in the alliance between the two men.

Gibran, 39, arrived at parliament in Jakarta and met leaders of the upper house for about 20 minutes, handing in his resignation and asking parliament to process it, upper house Speaker Ahmad Muzani said. Muzani read from the letter, saying Gibran made the decision “through my own volition … for the interests of the government and nation.”

Senior law minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra said Gibran quit for personal reasons and cited “growing public sentiment” in the five-paragraph letter.

Prabowo accepts resignation with a heavy heart

Prabowo said he had accepted his deputy’s resignation with a “heavy heart” and praised Gibran’s work. “I felt assisted. He did his job well,” Prabowo said in a speech, citing Gibran’s work across Indonesian regions and his “chivalrous attitude.” Gibran bowed and hugged Prabowo after the speech and left the presidential palace in Jakarta without saying anything.

Jokowi, speaking to reporters outside his home in Solo, in central Java, said: “We will continue to support President Prabowo’s administration, especially programmes that serve the interests of the broader public.”

Credentials fight led to the exit

Gibran was elected alongside Prabowo in the 2024 election, during which Jokowi was accused of meddling in the process by influencing a court decision that changed the election rules, enabling Gibran to stand.

His resignation followed a push by lawmakers for his impeachment on grounds of inadequate educational credentials. It also followed rulings by the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court that his overseas high school qualifications fell short of legal requirements for vice presidential candidates, and had been wrongly accepted by election authorities.

The upper house will have to hold a session to declare a vacancy after Gibran’s resignation, while sending the president a letter seeking the names of two replacement candidates, Yusril said on Wednesday. An election in the upper house will follow within 60 days.

Reuters described the departure as Indonesia’s highest-profile resignation since that of President Suharto in 1998. The rupiah weakened as much as 0.6 percent to a record low of 18,255 against the dollar, according to Reuters.

Reuters reported that analysts said the rift between Prabowo and Jokowi looked set to further unsettle the government. On Thursday, police said they had enough initial evidence to pursue treason charges against four suspects for wiretapping Prabowo, other politicians, activists and journalists.

Reporting based on coverage by Reuters.