Banda Aceh News | The foundations of Indonesia’s national security apparatus are trembling following an unprecedented and high-stakes criminal earthquake. In a stunning turn of events that has sent shockwaves through the corridors of power, the nation’s elite law enforcement agency has been rocked by the unthinkable: high-ranking general officers caught red-handed in an alleged illegal wiretapping conspiracy targeting no less than the President of the Republic of Indonesia, Prabowo Subianto.
As the gravity of the betrayal sinks in, the institution’s most revered elder statesmen have broken their silence. A powerful coalition comprising four former Chiefs of the Indonesian National Police (Kapolri)—General (Ret.) Da’i Bachtiar, General (Ret.) Sutanto, General (Ret.) Bambang Hendarso Danuri, and General (Ret.) Badrodin Haiti—alongside two former Deputy Chiefs and five retired high-ranking generals, has stepped forward to deliver an uncompromising moral wake-up call to the active ranks.
A Breach at the Highest Level
The scandal, which has laid bare an alarming vulnerability in state security, centers around the targeted electronic surveillance of President Prabowo Subianto and several other key national figures. Bareskrim Polri investigators, leading a relentless crackdown, have formally named four high-ranking police generals as suspects in a web of illegal wiretapping, unauthorized data destruction, and cyber infiltration.
The accused include heavyweights within the institution: former Kapolri Listyo Sigit, Head of the Legal Division (Kadivkum) Inspector General Ahrie Sonta Nasution, and Inspector General Eko Hadi Santoso. The net widened further when the Directorate of Cyber Crime (Dittipidsiber) Bareskrim Polri officially added Inspector General Slamet Uliandi to the suspect list following a comprehensive case review.
“Investigators have elevated the status of SU from witness to suspect after evidence confirmed fulfillment of unlawful acts,” stated Cyber Crime Director Brigadier General Suhermanto during a tense press briefing in Jakarta. While three of the suspects have been immediately locked away in detention at the Mako Brimob headquarters, authorities noted that Inspector General Slamet Uliandi remains un-detained for now, shielded temporarily by medical realities following a stroke.
A Historic Intervention by Police Legends
The revelation that those sworn to protect the state are instead accused of spying on the Commander-in-Chief has left the veteran leadership reeling. Speaking on behalf of the retired elite—and as the General Chairman of the Indonesian Police Retirees Association (PP Polri)—former Kapolri Bambang Hendarso Danuri released a searing seven-point moral declaration.
“With the unearthing of criminal acts involving illegal wiretapping, the deletion of electronic data, and unlawful access that places several high-ranking police officers as suspects, we express our profound and collective grief,” the joint statement read.
The retired leaders pulled no punches, demanding that current personnel use this dark chapter as an absolute lesson in professional ethics and absolute fidelity to the law. While they offered strong backing to current police leadership to root out corruption and treasonous behavior from within, they firmly underscored that justice must be unyielding, transparent, and anchored firmly in the principles of equality before the law and the presumption of innocence.
Shaken Foundations and the Call for Unity
Beyond the courtroom drama, the veterans issued an urgent plea for organizational survival. At a time when public trust hangs by a thread, they warned active officers against internal fractures or the erosion of institutional solidness. The core mission of safeguarding public order, they stressed, cannot be compromised by political paranoia or individual greed.
The statement also extended cautious gratitude to President Prabowo Subianto for maintaining strategic focus on the institution despite the betrayal, urging the rank-and-file to redouble their efforts in backing the government’s grand Asta Cita national development vision. Furthermore, they threw their full support behind the current Kapolri’s “Police Together with the Community” doctrine, a desperate reminder that law enforcement only survives when it serves the people rather than manipulating them from the shadows.
As investigations push deeper into the digital shadows, the question remains: how far did the web of surveillance stretch, and who else was pulling the wires? For now, Indonesia watches anxiously as its protectors face a historic reckoning.
