President Prabowo rejects claims free meals program is wasteful

hartono · Feb 13, 2026

President Prabowo Subianto symbolically inaugurates 1,179 police-run Free Nutritious Meals program kitchens in Jakarta on Friday (Feb. 13, 2026). ANTARA/Andi Firdaus

Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto reassured the public that the government is sustaining the Free Nutritious Meals (MBG) program using funds reallocated from a cross-institutional budget efficiency policy.

He reinforced his commitment to budget transparency during the inauguration of 1,179 police-run MBG kitchens in West Jakarta on Friday, responding to critics who accused the program of being wasteful, inefficient, and extravagant.

The president noted that since its launch on January 6 last year, the national priority program has faced negative and pessimistic views, including from people he considers academically accomplished.

"They predicted this meals project would fail, saying it was only a waste of budget," Prabowo said.

He firmly dismissed the adverse notion, stressing that the MBG program was made financially feasible through budget reallocation from trivial and unproductive activities and events.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the truth is that this program was born out of budget efficiency, which my team and I see as a way to safeguard state funds from corruption, from those driven by personal gain," he told the audience.

Elaborating further, the head of state highlighted that his administration had redirected state funds from less substantive meetings, seminars, and official trips to initiatives delivering tangible benefits to the wider public.

The budget efficiency policy, he said, is intended to prevent leakage and corruption and ensure that state funds are primarily directed to help residents with low financial capacity.

While acknowledging opposition and criticism as part of democracy, Prabowo asserted that the MBG program deserves recognition as a long-term investment in the nation’s future, citing its focus on improving human resource quality.

On that note, he said the government designed MBG as a means to safeguard people from childhood stunting, a form of chronic malnutrition that typically impedes children’s physical development.