Gibran resignation starts Indonesia’s 60-day VP replacement clock

Indonesian Vice-President Gibran Rakabuming Raka submitted his resignation letter to the People’s Consultative Assembly on Thursday, Channel NewsAsia reported.

The filing starts a constitutional process that gives the Upper House three days to approve his resignation and another 60 days to choose a successor, after two court rulings last month went against his education records.

Gibran, 39, met leaders of the People’s Consultative Assembly, or MPR, after earlier tendering his resignation to President Prabowo Subianto, according to the report. MPR speaker Ahmad Muzani told reporters: “Gibran explained his intention in meeting leaders of the People’s Consultative Assembly, which is to submit his resignation from his position as vice president of Indonesia.”

The timetable is compressed at the front end and longer for the political bargain that follows. The 60-day replacement window is 20 times the three-day approval period, according to Atlas360 calculations, underscoring how quickly the vacancy decision must be formalised before parties turn to succession.

Gibran arrived at the parliamentary complex in Jakarta at 11.15 a.m. and entered a private meeting with MPR leaders, Channel NewsAsia reported. He left at about 11.35 a.m.

without speaking to journalists.

The resignation follows legal setbacks over his academic records. On Oct. 30, Indonesia’s Supreme Court annulled Gibran’s overseas high-school education equivalency certificate, less than a month after the Constitutional Court found insufficient documentary evidence that his foreign schooling met qualification rules, according to the report.

Presidential spokesperson Prasetyo Hadi said Gibran met Prabowo for two-and-a-half hours on Tuesday morning and conveyed an intention to resign. Later that day, Gibran told reporters that Prabowo had advised him to continue fighting the case, including by seeking a judicial review of the Supreme Court ruling.

Political pressure had also increased before Thursday’s formal submission. Hundreds of people protested in Jakarta and other cities on Tuesday against several government policies, with Gibran’s impeachment included on the agenda of some groups, Channel NewsAsia reported.

On Wednesday, 120 parliamentarians from all eight factions signed a proposal to exercise the House of Representatives’ right to express an opinion, a mechanism that could potentially lead to impeachment proceedings. Atlas360 reported on Nov. 11 that Gibran had resigned following the credential rulings and mounting parliamentary pressure; Thursday’s step put that decision before the MPR for formal processing.

Gibran is the son of former president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, whose backing was central to the Prabowo-Gibran ticket’s 2024 election victory. Analysts cited by Channel NewsAsia said the controversy had widened a rift between Prabowo and Jokowi.

Jokowi told reporters at his home in Central Java that he had encouraged his son before the parliamentary appearance. “I have told Gibran that positions are temporary. We will continue to support the administration of President Prabowo, particularly his pro-people programmes,” he said, according to Kompas TV as quoted by Channel NewsAsia.

The MPR has three days from Thursday to approve the resignation, putting the immediate constitutional deadline on Nov. 15. The observable step is formal acceptance by the Upper House.

After approval, the MPR has another 60 days to select Indonesia’s next vice-president. The succession process will show how Prabowo’s governing coalition manages the fallout from the court rulings and parliamentary pressure.