Jakarta. President Prabowo Subianto on Monday dismissed claims that he is merely a puppet of his predecessor Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, pushing back on rumors that the former president still pulls strings behind the scenes.

“It’s as if President Jokowi calls me every night. I’m telling you, that’s just not true,” Prabowo said during a plenary cabinet meeting on Monday, responding to growing speculation about the former president’s influence over his administration.

Prabowo, who was inaugurated in October 2024 after securing Jokowi’s endorsement by naming his son, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, as his running mate, framed his ongoing dialogue with the former president as standard statecraft, not subservience

“Consulting with those who have led before is not a weakness; it’s a sign of wisdom,” he said, noting he has also met with former presidents Megawati Soekarnoputri and Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono. “If I could meet Gus Dur (Abdurrahman Wahid), Suharto, or even Soekarno, I would,” he added.

The retired general, who once ran against Jokowi in two bitterly contested elections, has found himself the subject of online conspiracy theories and political satire portraying him as a proxy to the man who helped him win power. His remarks are his most direct rebuttal yet to the "puppet" label that has dogged his presidency.

Prabowo also defended Jokowi’s legacy, calling his decade-long rule “a success." He also commented on persistent rumors questioning Jokowi’s academic credentials. “Soon they'll be asking about my diploma too,” he quipped.

Shifting to global affairs, Prabowo warned that Indonesia must remain nimble amid rising geopolitical uncertainty and a breakdown of the post-Cold War global economic order.

“For decades, we were the good boy of the international system, always playing by the rules set by the big powers, by the IMF, the World Bank, and proponents of globalization,” he said. “Now, those very countries are abandoning the systems they created.”

He argued that in such turbulent times, even veteran economists and finance ministers must “go back to school” to understand the rapidly evolving landscape. But Indonesia, he said, still has a compass: the 1945 Constitution.

“That document, written by our founders, must guide us through the storms,” Prabowo concluded.