Jakarta, ThedailyID — Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has revealed that an illegal mining operation has allegedly been running for eight years without permits, producing up to 500 kilograms of gold every month.
He estimated the operation produces around six tons of gold annually, with a total value of US$800 million, equivalent to approximately Rp15 trillion.
“There is a mine that has been operating for eight years without a permit. It produces 500 kilograms of gold every month. That means six tons a year, worth US$800 million, or around Rp15 trillion,” Prabowo said.
He made the remarks during the 15th anniversary celebration of the NasDem Party at NasDem Tower in Central Jakarta on Wednesday, November 11.
Prabowo described illegal mining as an act of stealing the country’s wealth. He argued that such operations cause state losses because their operators do not pay taxes or royalties and fail to report their activities.
“Some are robbing the country’s wealth. Illegal mining is robbery. They do not pay taxes or royalties. They do not even report their activities. How much of our wealth are we losing?” he said.
Illegal Mining and School Renovations
Prabowo then compared the estimated value of the gold production with the government’s school renovation budget.
He said the government had allocated funding to renovate around 70,000 schools by the end of 2026. However, he also mentioned a figure of 67,000 schools during his remarks.
According to Prabowo, Rp15 trillion could fund renovations for an additional 15,000 schools. This calculation uses an estimated average renovation cost of Rp1 billion per school.
“Imagine if we had Rp15 trillion. We could renovate another 15,000 schools, because the average cost of repairing or renovating one school is Rp1 billion,” he said.
Prabowo added that Indonesia has approximately 368,000 schools nationwide. However, the current budget allows the government to reach only part of that total.
During the event, he also shared that he had received a letter from an elementary school student thanking him for the renovation of the child’s school.
“I received a letter this morning from an elementary school student thanking me because their school had been renovated,” Prabowo said.
