Indonesia wants to ride the global data center boom, betting that investment, skilled jobs and computing power for artificial intelligence will drive economic growth. But the cloud leaves its imprint on the ground: Data centers consume vast amounts of electricity and water and can expose surrounding communities to heat and noise. The question is whether the government will make this boom work for the public or leave communities to pay for it.

President Prabowo Subianto wants Indonesians to enjoy free education from kindergarten through university. Few would dispute the objective of making education more accessible. The harder question is how the government will pay for it. The state has yet to fully fund a Constitutional Court order to extend free compulsory basic education to private schools, even as Prabowo adds free university tuition to a budget already carrying increasingly expensive signature programs.

The government has formally changed how it manages its budget surplus funds (SAL), ending a nearly year-long debate over how the roughly Rp 400 trillion (US$22.4 billion) in surplus funds should be managed and put to use. Under Finance Ministry Regulation (PMK) No. 67/2026, excess government cash can now be placed with commercial banks or invested in government securities (SBN), giving the Finance Ministry greater flexibility in managing its cash.

The decision by PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) to recall several electric trains produced by PT Industri Kereta Api (INKA) for its Commuter Line service adds to the challenges facing the state-owned rolling stock manufacturer, which is struggling with high debt and production constraints amid a planned merger with KAI. Meanwhile, government approval to import secondhand rolling stock from Japan provides a short-term solution to KAI’s train shortage. Such reliance on imports could persist unless INKA’s production capacity and the domestic rolling stock supply chain are strengthened.

Indonesia has once again been forced to confront an uncomfortable question: What happens to the principle of equality before the law once the courtroom doors close?

The House of Representatives is entering its most consequential electoral reform since 2017. As Commission II drafts a new Election Law for 2029, the fault line is already clear: the legislative threshold.

Indonesia's illegal cigarette trade has long deprived the state of revenue and undermined formal producers. Recent allegations that people linked to a House of Representatives legislator sold counterfeit excise stamps, however, suggest that illicit trade may also involve those with access to formal institutions. The case raises questions about how illegal cigarettes keep circulating through counterfeit branding, informal distribution and alleged collusion, even as authorities tighten enforcement and regulation.