Prabowo and Jonan Closed Meeting Discusses Whoosh Fast Train

November 5, 2025
7:22 AM

Jakarta, hitclubapk3 Indonesia
—
President
Prabowo Subianto
met with the former Minister of Transportation (Menhub)
Ignatius Jonan
Jakarta-Bandung Fast Train polemic
Whoosh
which has been very popular lately.
The meeting was held at the Presidential Palace, Jakarta, on Monday (3/11) afternoon.The meeting lasted behind closed doors for approximately two hours with Prabowo not discussing the Whoosh issue at all.
After the meeting, Jonan denied that the meeting with Prabowo discussed the Jakarta-Bandung Whoosh Fast Train polemic.
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“No, I wasn’t asked to have input on that,” said Jonan after the meeting.
When asked about his views on the Whoosh debt polemic, Jonan refused to comment.He admitted that he no longer served as Minister of Transportation so he did not have the capacity to comment on this matter.
Jonan actually admitted that he had arrived as an ordinary citizen and discussed the government’s current priority programs, such as Free Nutritious Meals (MBG).
“For example, MBG, there is the Red and White Kopdes, then the People’s School, which
multiplier effect
I think the economy will slowly grow.”Indeed, if you were asked to be perfect from the start, it might not be possible,” said Jonan.
When met separately, Prabowo revealed something different.He admitted that the meeting with Jonan discussed the Whoosh issue.
“Yes, we talk, always,” said Prabowo when asked whether it was true that the meeting with Jonan discussed fast trains at the press conference for the inauguration of Tanah Abang Baru Station, Jakarta, Tuesday (4/11)
He called Jonan to the Palace to discuss many things because he considered Jonan to be one of the nation’s figures so he invited him to exchange views.
“We exchanged views. He, I think, is a figure, a national figure. So, I always enjoy meeting him and exchanging views on many things,” he said.
When Prabowo met Jonan, the Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development (Menko IPK) Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono (AHY) was also present at the palace.
In contrast to Jonan, AHY said that one of the meetings was to discuss the Whoosh debt polemic.However, he said his meeting with Prabowo was a different session with Jonan.
Former Minister of Transportation Jonan was the party who launched the Whoosh project when he served in 2014-2016.Even though it is quite difficult, he asked the project developers to meet one of the conditions regarding passenger safety standards.
Jonan doesn’t care about the high-speed train investment value offered by China and Japan because the price difference offered by the two foreign competitors does not reflect the level of safety guarantee for prospective passengers.
Japan submitted a bid for the project value of US$ 6.2 billion and has been conducting feasibility studies since 2014. Japan also promised to create a train with a speed of 320 km per hour within five years (2016-2021).
Meanwhile, China suddenly made an offer with a project value of US$5.5 billion in 2015. With the price offered being cheaper than Japan, China promised a train with a speed of 350 km per hour in just two years (2016-2018).
After China emerged as the winner of the tender and PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC) was formed, Jonan required 9 conditions for the infrastructure implementation agreement (concession) for the fast train project so that the project could run.
One of them is that project financing cannot use APBN funds.As much as 75 percent of the funding for this project came from China Development Bank (CDB) loan funds.The remaining 25 percent comes from the consortium’s own equity/funds.
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