More than half of respondents surveyed by the Center of Economic and Law Studies (CELIOS) report that the nation’s economic conditions have deteriorated over the past year, according to a performance report released by the think tank.
The findings form part of the Rapor Kinerja 2 Tahun Prabowo-Gibran, an evaluation of the administration led by President Prabowo Subianto and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka. Specifically, 53% of respondents state that the current economic climate is worse than it was a year ago.
Public dissatisfaction extends far beyond broad economic metrics. An overwhelming 82% of respondents report that taxes and levies are placing a burden on the public, while 62% argue that the government has failed to address unemployment and job creation effectively.
Fiscal Risks and Public Services
CELIOS directs sharp criticism at the administration’s policymaking, public spending priorities, and accountability mechanisms. The report warns that certain government initiatives threaten to create fiscal risks while diverting resources away from essential public services.
“Quasi-fiscal measures use budgets outside established provisions to facilitate priority programs, creating a chain of risks that can spread from the state budget to the banking sector and ultimately harm taxpayers,” the report states.
Furthermore, the assessment argues that communities bear the brunt of centrally designed programs formulated without adequate research or public participation. “Farmers and Indigenous communities bear the burden of programs designed at the central level without studies and without participation,” according to the findings.
The report contends that budgetary allocations shift toward programs that are easy to showcase. Consequently, internal criticisms are silenced at a time when basic public services require attention.
Cabinet Reshuffles and Public Debt
Addressing structural management, CELIOS criticizes repeated cabinet reshuffles as an insufficient remedy for deeper institutional weaknesses. The organization argues that replacing personnel accomplishes little without stronger policy planning, performance evaluation, and accountability.
“Repeated reshuffles are a symptom of a cabinet managed without a policy engine, performance metrics or auditable decision records; unless these problems are addressed, replacing ministers will only change the people,” the report notes.
Public anxiety regarding national finances is also pronounced. A striking 63% of respondents believe that current government debt will burden future generations. Beyond monetary worries, 75% of participants report that government policies cause them stress, while 67% report stress related to Prabowo’s behavior.
Voter Disillusionment and Approval Scores
Political fallout is visible even among the coalition that brought the administration to power. Among respondents who voted for Prabowo in the 2024 presidential election, 55% express disappointment and state they would not vote for him again in the next election.
Across the general public, CELIOS assigns Prabowo an average performance score of 4.6 out of 10. Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka receives an average score of 4.9.
CELIOS conducted the general-public survey from September 15 to October 9, 2026, gathering responses from 1,142 individuals across Indonesian provinces. The survey utilized non-probability sampling via Meta Ads, adjusted with weighting to align with the characteristics of the reference population.
