Asiaupdated 21m ago3 min read
MapGibran Rakabuming Raka Resigns as Indonesia Vice President Over Diploma Scandal
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Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka resigned amid questions over authenticity of his high school diploma. The resignation followed a Supreme Court ruling annulling his overseas high school qualification.
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Resignation Over Diploma Row
Indonesia’s vice president Gibran Rakabuming Raka resigned after a scandal over his secondary school diploma, submitting his resignation to President Prabowo Subianto and parliament on Thursday. Prabowo accepted the resignation with a “heavy heart,” and the People’s Consultative Assembly speaker told reporters that the vice president’s vacancy would be filled after the assembly elects a replacement from two candidates nominated by the president within 60 days. Gibran, 39, left office after serving two years of his five-year term, as the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court ruled last month that the documents he submitted regarding his overseas education did not meet election requirements.
The Supreme Court ruling prompted more than 100 lawmakers to support a parliamentary initiative that could have paved the way for proceedings to impeach Gibran, and the BBC said the resignation process was triggered amid signs the ruling alliance was fraying. The resignation came as thousands of protesters took to the streets in recent weeks to protest economic hardship, corruption, perceived authoritarianism and the government’s handling of months of devastating wildfires emitting a toxic haze that made thousands ill.
Prabowo Praises, Jokowi Backs
Prabowo told reporters he had accepted Gibran’s resignation with a “heavy heart,” and he praised Gibran for acting “for the benefit of the nation, the state, and the people of Indonesia”. Jokowi told reporters from his hometown in Solo that he had reminded his son that political positions are temporary, and he said he still supported Prabowo’s leadership. Gibran defended his educational credentials by telling parliamentary leaders that he had submitted the same resignation letter to Prabowo, and he also said, “If I did not have a high school diploma, I would clearly not have been able to enter university.”
The BBC reported that the Supreme Court found “No evidence was found to show Gibran had a foreign diploma or certificate” that could serve as the basis for equivalency with a senior high school or equivalent qualification. The resignation also followed a Supreme Court ruling in October that annulled his foreign secondary education qualification, and it came as authorities arrested the former head of the national police and three senior police officers on charges of tapping the president’s phone.
Next Steps and Political Fallout
Indonesia’s People’s Consultative Assembly will elect a replacement from two candidates nominated by the president within 60 days, and the office remains vacant until that election occurs.
Under Indonesian law, House leaders must establish a special committee to examine whether Gibran violated the constitution by serving as vice president despite allegedly failing to meet election requirements, and if lawmakers find sufficient basis they must ask the Constitutional Court to rule on whether a constitutional violation occurred.
The BBC said Gibran asked for the chance to challenge the ruling and be given the opportunity to prove the legitimacy of his education credentials, with State Secretariat Prasetyo Hadi describing that request.
Khairul Fahmi, executive director of the Institute for Security and Strategic Studies, said the resignation “represents a significant political realignment, but does not necessarily threaten government stability,” and he argued Jokowi would retain political influence.
The New York Times framed Gibran’s departure as injecting new political uncertainty in Southeast Asia’s largest economy, and it quoted Yoes C. Kenawas saying, “The relationship has clearly fractured.”