News of Gibran's Resignation, Political Elite's Positions, and Open Speculation Space

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Reports about Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka supposedly wanting to resign from his position continue to circulate. Over the past two days, information spreading includes not only his intention to resign but also news of a resignation letter handed to President Prabowo Subianto.

Amid these reports, political dynamics in the parliament are also moving. A total of 120 members of the House of Representatives from eight factions have signed a proposal to use the Right to Express Opinion (HMP) regarding the controversy surrounding Gibran's diploma. The proposal is scheduled to be presented at the plenary session of the House of Representatives on Thursday (11/12/2026).

These two developments are occurring simultaneously. However, there has been no official statement clarifying Gibran's resignation status. Meanwhile, processes in the House of Representatives still need to follow institutional mechanisms.

In this unclear situation, statements from officials and political elites have raised several questions.

These include differing accounts regarding the meeting between Prabowo and Gibran, Budi Arie Setiadi's justification of the resignation letter, and the responses from certain institutional leaders who claim they are unaware of these developments.

Resignation intention disclosed on Tuesday morning

The news of Gibran's intention to resign was first conveyed by State Secretary Minister Prasetyo Hadi. According to him, Gibran met Prabowo at the Presidential Palace on Tuesday morning (11/10/2026).

During the 2.5-hour meeting, Gibran reportedly expressed his intention to resign following developments in the Constitutional Court (MK) and Supreme Court (MA) decisions.

"In the conversation, the Vice President, along with President Prabowo Subianto, conveyed a desire to resign in light of evolving dynamics related to decisions from the Constitutional Court and Supreme Court," said Prasetyo.

Prasetyo also denied the rumors that Prabowo rejected Gibran's desire to resign.

Interestingly, after the morning meeting, Gibran accompanied Prabowo at a national hero award ceremony at the State Palace on Tuesday afternoon.

They were seen walking side by side at the State Palace in Central Jakarta, passing the rows of photos of figures receiving national honors.

Gibran encouraged to continue fighting

On Tuesday evening, Gibran addressed the media at the Vice Presidential Palace. He explained that Prabowo provided many suggestions and inputs regarding the dynamics he is facing.

However, in his statement, Gibran did not mention his resignation intention.

"The President is like a father to me. He gives a lot of advice and feedback regarding the current dynamics," said Gibran.

One of the recommendations from Prabowo, according to Gibran, was to continue pursuing the diploma issue through legal channels in the Administrative Court (PTUN).

"One of his suggestions was for me to keep fighting in the PTUN by presenting all documents from elementary school to my bachelor's degree," he said.

Gibran also stated that Prabowo asked him to coordinate with the Ministry of Education and Culture regarding the possibility of submitting a review petition (PK) in the Supreme Court.

He expressed respect for public criticism and input and does not want the controversy to prolong into a political issue.

Legal avenues narrowing

Amid Gibran's explanation regarding the legal measures he will pursue, Coordinating Minister for Law, Human Rights, Immigration, and Corrections Yusril Ihza Mahendra offered a different perspective.

Yusril judged Gibran's efforts through the PTUN as largely ineffective since the Supreme Court's decision is final and relates to the same material.

According to Yusril, Gibran is not the defendant in the matter, thus cannot appeal or submit a PK.

The party that can submit a PK is the Ministry of Education and Culture as the defendant regarding the issuance of equivalency diploma certificates. Yusril also anticipates that the ministry will implement the decree already issued.

"There’s no use (proving at the PTUN). Because the Supreme Court's decision is final. The material is the same," said Yusril.

Resignation news resurfacing

Reports of Gibran's resignation reemerged on Wednesday (11/11/2026) afternoon. This time, information circulating claims that Gibran has handed a resignation letter to Prabowo at Halim Perdanakusuma Air Base in East Jakarta.

However, nothing has been confirmed about this report, except that Projo Chairman Budi Arie Setiadi affirmed the information.

"That's correct," said Budi Arie.

However, Budi Arie did not provide further explanations regarding the timing of the submission, the letter’s content, or any follow-up after the letter was delivered.

As of Wednesday evening, no official comments from Prabowo or Gibran have clarified the status of the letter and the subsequent processes.

Amid these reports, Gibran was also not seen accompanying Prabowo at the 15th anniversary celebration of the Nasdem Party at Nasdem Tower on Wednesday night.

This was in contrast to Gibran's previous appearances alongside Prabowo at several party events, such as the 28th anniversary of the National Mandate Party at JCC Senayan on September 18, 2026.

During the Nasdem event, Prabowo conveyed a message about life choices. He stated that everyone ultimately must choose the right path, even if it is filled with obstacles, or the wrong path, which seems easier.

“Every human must eventually choose; everyone will reach a point where they see that the road splits. The right road, but full of obstacles. This road is comfortable and fast. But it is the wrong road,” said Prabowo.

No statements were made linking Prabowo’s remarks directly with Gibran's resignation news.

No one denies or confirms

Amid the rumors of the resignation letter, several political elites present at the 15th anniversary of Nasdem were also asked for their responses.

Chairman of the MPR and Secretary General of the Gerindra Party Ahmad Muzani admitted he had not heard any information regarding it.

"I haven’t heard, I haven’t seen it," said Muzani.

Deputy Speaker of the House Sufmi Dasco Ahmad also claimed he learned about Gibran's resignation from news quoting Budi Arie's statement.

"Like my friends, I also just read in the media, that there’s news from Pak Budi Arie. As for the others, I'm still not aware. That's all," said Dasco.

Dasco stated that he had briefly met Prabowo at the event. However, according to him, there was no discussion regarding Gibran's resignation.

"We met Pak Prabowo here; there was no discussion as conveyed," he stated.

Movement in the House of Representatives

As news of Gibran's resignation continued to circulate, other developments emerged from the House of Representatives. A total of 120 House members from eight factions have signed a proposal to use the Right to Express Opinion regarding the diploma controversy surrounding Gibran.

The leadership of the House has decided to take this proposal to a plenary meeting on Thursday (11/12/2026).

"So, we will process this in leadership, bring it to the leadership meeting of the House, and later to the deliberative body or consultative meeting replacing the Bamus," said Deputy Speaker of the House, Saan Mustofa.

Deputy Speaker of the House Sufmi Dasco Ahmad revealed that the House will hold a plenary session on Thursday (11/12/2026) afternoon.

"There’s an agenda for the plenary session at 14:00 if I’m not mistaken. However, as of now, this invitation has not been distributed," explained Dasco at Nasdem Tower on Wednesday (11/11/2026).

Based on information received by Kompas.com, the agenda of the plenary meeting will address the announcement of the proposal to use the rights of the members of the House. Additionally, the opinions of the factions on the Draft Law on the Procedures for Establishing Legislation from the initiative of the House Legislative Agency will follow through to the decision-making to become a Draft Law proposed by the House.

Secondly, the approval of the extension of the discussion time regarding the Draft Law on Statistics will proceed with the decision-making.

Wednesday night at the Vice Presidential Palace

Amid the swirling information, the atmosphere around the Vice Presidential Palace also drew media attention on Wednesday evening.

At around 18:30 WIB, a black Toyota Innova Zenix belonging to the Vice President was seen parked in the area of the Vice Presidential Palace. The headlights of the car were on. Several Presidential Security Forces members were observed walking about the vehicle, which was being warmed up.

Media personnel present in the location waited about 30 minutes. However, the vehicle later moved in a different direction and did not leave through the gates of the Vice Presidential Palace on Jalan Kebon Sirih.

A staff member asked the media to wait in the Selasar Marsela area.

Shortly thereafter, several staff members from Building 2 Secretariat were seen exiting. They greeted each other and hugged. Some appeared to have teary eyes.

This scene became one of the moments that captured attention amidst reports regarding Gibran's future in office.

Diverging statements, differing emphasis

Political communication observer from Esa Unggul University M Jamiluddin Ritonga opines that the divergence in statements regarding Gibran's resignation intention has the potential to create misunderstandings among the public.

According to Jamiluddin, the public is faced with two differing pieces of information regarding the results of the meeting between Prabowo and Gibran. Prasetyo conveyed that Gibran expressed a resignation intention, while Gibran emphasized Prabowo's advice for him to keep fighting through legal means.

"The two different statements regarding Gibran's resignation intention can indeed lead to misperceptions in the public. This certainly returns to the public as to which statement is credible," said Jamiluddin to Kompas.com on Wednesday (11/11/2026).

Jamiluddin believes Prasetyo's statement could indicate that a discussion regarding the resignation intention indeed occurred. However, Gibran may view that discussion as a personal communication with the President, hence not conveying it back to reporters.

"Therefore, Gibran did not relay that to reporters. Gibran chose to emphasize Prabowo's suggestion to 'fight back' regarding his diploma at court," he asserted.

In political communication, communicators generally deliver messages that benefit themselves or their institutions. Conversely, messages perceived as disadvantageous are typically withheld from the public.

"However, in political communication, sources (communicators) generally convey messages that are advantageous to themselves or their institutions. Disadvantageous messages will often be concealed or not disclosed," said Jamiluddin.

He believes the non-disclosure of Gibran's resignation intention might relate to political calculations, as such an acknowledgment could impact Gibran's political stance amid the ongoing controversy.

"Therefore, the public needs to be selective and critical when receiving political communication messages. This is necessary to prevent the public from getting caught up in and seduced by the messages conveyed by the Palace and Gibran," he advised.

Jamiluddin also believes that the Palace and Gibran should present facts openly and consistently to prevent speculation from escalating.

"To prevent speculation from arising and prolonging the controversy, the Palace and Gibran should present the facts as they are. For this, the message bearer must maintain honesty," he remarked.