Challenged in the Constitutional Court for Burdening the State Budget, Wantimpres: We Do Not See Efficiency, but...

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Mohammad Hatta, a member of the Presidential Advisory Board (Wantimpres), stated that the most important aspect of the appointment of 26 Wantimpres members by President Prabowo Subianto is its future benefits.

Therefore, Hatta noted, Wantimpres does not focus on the efficiency aspect.

This is because President Prabowo Subianto has been given the authority to appoint Wantimpres members commensurate with the scale of the state's workload.

"I believe that if we look at the new law, the new Wantimpres Law of 2024 grants the president the authority to consider the interests aligned with the large responsibilities of the state. So, we do not view this from the angle of efficiency or anything like that. What is most important here is its future benefits which can be much greater. That’s how we see it," Hatta said when met by Kompas.com at the Golkar Party's DPP office in West Jakarta on Tuesday (20/10/2026) evening.

Hatta reminded that the work of Wantimpres in the next three years is tied to significant challenges.

He mentioned that Wantimpres must be able to maintain government cohesion.

In addition, according to Hatta, national security stability must also be enhanced.

"Currently, the economic issue is to eradicate poverty, which is a priority program from the President," he asserted.

"Wantimpres is currently making serious efforts in its working capacity to provide considerations and inputs to the President that will be beneficial. We are just starting to work," Hatta added.

Challenge to the Constitutional Court

Article 7 paragraph (1) of Law Number 64 of 2024 concerning Presidential Advisory Board (Wantimpres) regarding the number of members has been formally challenged in the Constitutional Court (MK).

The applicant argues that the absence of a norm limiting the number of members in this beleid has led to the appointment of 26 members (Wantimpres), which fosters wastefulness and burdens the State Budget (APBN).

"The lack of a limit on the number of Wantimpres members directly results in unmeasurable potential burdens on the State Budget (APBN). This is because salaries, facilities, and other expenses are borne by the APBN," the application dossier states, as reported by the Constitutional Court’s website on Tuesday (20/10/2026).

The regulation in Article 7 paragraph (1) of the new Wantimpres Law, which allows the number of members to be fully at the "discretion of the president," is seen as problematic due to the absence of a maximum limit.

This unrestricted filling of positions is considered a strain on the country’s finances, especially since the financial rights of the Chair and Members of Wantimpres are regulated to reach Rp76,500,000 per month according to Presidential Regulation Number 15 of 2026 amid a soaring budget deficit in 2026.

"The most just and constitutional synthesis is not to eliminate limits entirely, but to combine that flexibility with a maximum limit of up to 9 (nine) members as needed by the president, thus protecting the president's discretion without violating efficient APBN governance," the applicant wrote in the application.

In addition to questioning the appointment of 26 Wantimpres members on October 2, 2026, based on Presidential Decree Number 107/P of 2026, the applicant also highlighted the existence of 10 Special Advisors to the President.

With a total of 36 individuals advising the President, this advisory institution structure is deemed overly bloated and risks repeating the historical expansion of the members of the Supreme Advisory Council (DPA) in the past.

"This historical experience shows the risk of a significant increase in the number of members of the president's advisory institution when there are no clearly defined limits on the number of members," the applicant wrote.