Jakarta – The Presidential Secretariat hosted a parade featuring replicas of the Red and White Heritage Flag and the text of the Proclamation of Independence, traveling from Monas field in Central Jakarta to Halim Perdanakusuma Airport in East Jakarta on Saturday (8/10).

The parade, which took approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes to cover the roughly 14-kilometer distance from Monas to Halim Perdanakusuma, was conducted using the Maung tactical vehicle developed by the 2024-2029 President-elect Prabowo Subianto and domestically manufactured by PT Pindad.

Prabowo’s involvement with the Maung tactical vehicle began when he served as the Minister of Defense in the Advanced Indonesia Cabinet since 2019. Prabowo was actively involved with Pindad in the creation of the 4×4 tactical vehicle, which was named ‘Maung’.

“Maung was indeed initially conceptualized by Mr. Prabowo,” revealed Sigit P. Santosa, Director of Technology and Development at PT Pindad in Jakarta, on Sunday (8/11).

Following the success of the first generation of Maung, Prabowo continued to request various innovations and improvements, leading to the launch of the third generation of the tactical vehicle, which boasts significant enhancements, particularly in its robust body capable of maneuvering through various extreme terrains.

“Pindad’s technical team elaborated on Mr. Prabowo’s innovative ideas into the design, tactical capability development, and mass production,” said Sigit.

Furthermore, last year during an executive meeting, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) officially named the vehicle, continuing with the name ‘Maung’ as initially proposed by Prabowo. The choice of the name Maung is due to its strong, albeit brief and simple, meaning.

Regarding the parade route, the Deputy of Protocol, Press, and Media at the Presidential Secretariat, M Yusuf Permana, explained that the journey began at Monas, passing the horse statue, Thamrin Road, HI Roundabout, Semanggi, and then continued to Halim Perdanakusuma Airport.

Upon arrival at Halim Perdanakusuma Airport, the replica flag and Proclamation text will be flown to the National Palace in the new capital city, Nusantara, in East Kalimantan, aboard a Boeing aircraft of the Indonesian Air Force.

“Usually, (the parade) goes from Monas to Merdeka Palace. This time, we are making history by having the parade travel from Monas to the IKN,” said Yusuf.

Yusuf added that the flag will be handed over by President Jokowi to the 2024 Paskibraka team to be hoisted at the State Palace IKN on August 17, 2024.