Cultural Critic Slams “Islam ala Prabowo” Book as Intellectual Prostitution
Cultural figure Mohamad Sobary has slammed the book “Islam ala Prabowo,” which links President Prabowo Subianto to an Islamic identity. He says the portrayal is way over the top and could end up hurting Prabowo both politically and image-wise.
Sobary reckons that if the book was meant to serve Prabowo’s political interests, then running with the idea isn’t strange. But the political gain, he argues, just doesn’t stack up against the possible fallout. “The upside for Prabowo is tiny while the downsides are huge,” he said during a discussion.
He called the way the book paints Prabowo into an Islamic narrative a form of “intellectual prostitution” that’s crossed the line of what’s decent. Sobary made it clear that Prabowo shouldn’t be dressed up as the face of Islam through a construction like this.
Sobary wrapped up by saying that carelessly propping up Prabowo through the Islam issue could turn into a fatal move. He stressed that Prabowo shouldn’t be tied in an excessive way to Islamic narratives.
https://www.gelora.co/2026/09/