Member of the House of Representatives from the Gerindra Faction, Azis Subekti, said that in recent weeks, Indonesia's public space has been filled with two debates that at first glance seem different, but are actually connected.
The first debate concerns the rupiah exchange rate, which is moving close to Rp17,800 per US dollar. The second debate emerged after the Central Statistics Agency recorded a 21.81 percent growth in government consumption in the first quarter of 2026.
From these two figures, according to Azis, various conclusions were born. Some see Indonesia is heading towards serious economic pressure, and some assess that today's economic growth is only based on state spending. In fact, he said, not a few concluded that the Indonesian economy is actually losing power from the community and the business world.
"Such criticism is certainly legitimate. Democracy needs space for differences of opinion. However, the problem arises when the numbers are read separately from their context. When statistics are treated like a verdict, not as an entry point to understand a more complete reality. This is where economics often loses its clarity. Because economics is not just about the fastest growing numbers. Economics is about understanding who is really giving the biggest energy for the movement of a nation," said Azis Subekti in his statement, Sunday, May 31.
The Gerindra legislator from the Central Java District said that government consumption indeed grew very high at the beginning of this year. However, high growth does not automatically mean the largest contribution. In the structure of Indonesia's Gross Domestic Product, according to Azis, government consumption is only in the range of 6.7 percent. Meanwhile, household consumption reaches around 54 percent of the overall national economic activity.
"This difference is very important to understand. A component can grow the fastest, but it does not necessarily become the main pillar of the economy. Like a vehicle, the loudest engine part does not necessarily come from the component that produces the greatest power," he said.
"Therefore, when the public concludes that the Indonesian economy is 'supported by the state', in fact there is an important part that is missed," continued Azis.
Azis assessed that, with the source of growth approach used by BPS, household consumption contributed around 2.94 points to national economic growth. Investment contributed around 1.79 points, while government consumption was around 1.26 points.
"These numbers convey a simple but important message: the Indonesian economy does not stand on one leg. It moves because of a combination of community activities, business, and state policies. That is where Indonesia's strength lies, which is often underappreciated," he said.
Azis views, for a long time Indonesia is not a country that lives mainly from exports such as Singapore, South Korea, or Taiwan. Indonesia is also not an economy that relies on the financial market as many developed countries.
"Indonesia's greatest strength lies in its own domestic market. In the millions of transactions that take place every day. At traders who open stalls since dawn. At farmers who plant even though the season is not always friendly. At fishermen who set off before sunrise. At workers who go to the office. At MSMEs that continue to survive in the midst of changes in time. At families who buy daily necessities. At millions of people who may never appear in the main statistics, but in fact become the heart of national economic life," he explained.
"That is why when mobility increases, trade is back in full swing, travel during Idulfitri increases, local economic centers move, restaurants are full, traditional markets are alive, and MSMEs are back in production, in fact we are witnessing the main engine of the Indonesian economy working. This is not just a story about consumption. This is a story about trust. About the confidence of millions of people that tomorrow is still worth fighting for," continued Azis.
At the same time, however, said Azis, domestic optimism should not make us close our eyes to the outside world. Because the modern world has changed, today's global financial markets are able to influence the country's space in ways that have never happened in the past, the rupiah exchange rate, capital flows, bond markets, global interest rates, energy prices, and investor sentiment are interconnected in a very complex network.
"When global investors feel that risks are increasing, capital can leave developing countries. The rupiah weakens. Bond yields rise. Financing costs increase. Fiscal space is shrinking. At that point, the market is giving an assessment. Not an assessment of one policy. But against a country's ability to maintain direction. Because the modern market does not only read numbers. It reads discipline. It reads consistency. It reads credibility. And often, it reads the future before the future actually arrives," he said.
"This is where the state's task becomes increasingly difficult. The state must be strong enough to maintain market confidence, but at the same time must not lose its connection with the pulse of people's lives. Because the market and the people actually carry out different functions," added Azis.
According to Azis, the market provides liquidity, the people provide resilience, the market provides capital, the people provide demand, the market provides signals, the people provide life. "The biggest mistake a country can make is to choose one and ignore the other. A country that only pursues market assessments can lose its social legitimacy," he said.
"On the contrary, countries that ignore economic discipline and only rely on domestic optimism will face equally severe pressure," he added.
Therefore, Azis assessed, Indonesia's future challenge is not merely to keep the rupiah stable or maintain growth above five percent.
"The real challenge is to ensure that domestic market power continues to grow through increased people's productivity. MSMEs must be upgraded. Cooperatives must become modern economic institutions. Farmers must have better access to technology and financing. Fishermen must be connected to more efficient supply chains. Industries must be increasingly value-added. Industrialization must generate jobs and foreign exchange. Investment must create new production capacity, not just asset transfers. And the state must continue to find new innovations so that the pulse of the economy at the grassroots level never loses energy," said the member of Commission II of the DPR.
"Because history shows that many countries have large but fragile financial markets when crises come. Indonesia has something that other countries don't have easily: a large domestic market, an adaptive society,
"And the people's economy, which has repeatedly proven to be a cushion when the world loses its balance," he continued.
Therefore, Azis emphasized, when the market gives an assessment, Indonesia must listen to it carefully. But when determining the direction of the future, never forget who has been keeping the wheels of the economy turning.
"Not the trading floor in the world's financial centers. But millions of people who open shops every morning, cultivate rice fields, run businesses, work, produce, and believe that the future of this nation is still worth fighting for," he said.
"Because in the end, the market does judge. But the people are the ones who decide," he concluded.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
