Golkar Responds to President Prabowo's 'Crab Nation' Remark

Golkar Party Secretary General Sarmuji responded to President Prabowo Subianto's statement highlighting the tendency of mutual undermining and likening the condition to the mentality of a 'crab nation.' Sarmuji viewed the message as a caution for the Indonesian nation not to repeat past mistakes. "It is a leader's warning so that we do not fall into the same mistakes as in the past," Sarmuji told reporters on Saturday (11/7/2026). Sarmuji stated that the Indonesian nation must be able to manage dissatisfaction well. According to him, dissatisfaction should not turn into envy and malice. "This nation must be able to manage dissatisfaction. Dissatisfaction must not make us envious and malicious. Do not wish to always lead while power is certainly rotated. Do not let us not have time to build because we are pulling each other down," he said. The Chairman of the Golkar Party Faction in the House of Representatives assessed that criticism of the government is not included in the category of mutual undermining that Prabowo meant. In fact, he said, constructive criticism is needed so that the government remains on the right track. "Constructive criticism certainly does not fall into the category intended by the president. Even criticism is needed so that the government remains on the right track," he said. "Give whoever is leading the opportunity to be able to lead well and fulfill every promise," he added. Previously, Prabowo touched upon the mentality of mutual undermining which is still a challenge in Indonesia. Prabowo likened the condition to a 'crab nation,' where crabs pull each other down when one tries to climb up. This was conveyed by Prabowo while giving a speech at the launch of Biosolar B50, at the Rest Area, Karawang, West Java, on Thursday (8/7/2026). According to him, such behavior might be a consequence of a long history of colonialism that has caused some people to have inferiority complexes. Prabowo said there is still a tendency for some people to feel happy when they see their peers experiencing difficulties. He then quoted the term 'crab nation' to describe this behavior. "It is said that we are a crab nation. If a fellow crab is already climbing up, the crab below pulls it down again. Another crab wants to climb up, another crab pulls it down again," he said. "That means enjoying seeing a colleague in trouble, and being troubled by seeing a colleague happy. I don't know, perhaps you brothers and sisters also have experiences," Prabowo continued.