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Indonesian minister calls disaster aid from M'sia 'not much', netizens tell him to 'just say thank you'
The minister said that the Indonesian central government's aid efforts were far greater.
December 16, 2025, 05:23 PM
Indonesia’s Home Affairs Minister Tito Karnavian appeared to have downplayed aid and assistance from neighbouring Malaysia after devastating floods hit the Aceh province in early December.
His comments have prompted backlash from Malaysians online, who condemned his lack of appreciation for what were largely personal donations from Malaysian individuals.
Tropical storm Senya
Tito was speaking on an Indonesian podcast Suara Lokal Mengglobal, about the current state of recovery efforts in Aceh.
Devastating floods caused by tropical storm Senya hit the Aceh province, located at the northern tip of the island of Sumatra.
The storm and floods killed more than a thousand people, and left hundreds of thousands displaced as the floods destroyed or damaged over 180,000 homes.
The disaster had prompted some in the area to appeal for aid to anyone who would listen.
One social media account even made a direct appeal to Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, with other commenters criticising the Indonesian central government for a slow response.
Since then, members of the Malaysian public have contributed over a billion Indonesian rupiah (S$77,500) in aid.
"Not much"
The South China Morning Post reported that Tito had said on the podcast that Malaysia’s contribution had been “not much”.
He tried to focus listener’s attention on what he termed the “far larger” central government response.
He criticised the “narrative that we need help from another country”, later noting that the central government had mobilised “billions of rupiah” in funding.
It had also mobilised multiple agencies, rescue teams, police, and helicopters to aid those in need in northern Sumatra.
Tito then went on to point out that the contribution from Malaysia had been from private citizens, rather than from the government.
However, the same article pointed out that foreign governments had offered aid, but had been turned down by Indonesia’s president, Prabowo Subianto.
Prabowo acknowledged the offers at the time, saying that he had thanked foreign leaders for the offers but turned them down, saying, “we are capable, Indonesia is able to handle this”.
"Just say thank you"
Tito’s comments sparked annoyance from Malaysian commenters, who criticised him for being ungrateful, asking, “Why can’t you just say thank you?”
On a social media clip of the interview, one particularly irate commenter said (in all caps) “SIR, WHY DO YOU HAVE TO COMPARE THE AID GIVEN BY OTHER COUNTRIES WITH THE AID FROM YOUR OWN COUNTRY”.
Some Indonesians joined in, pointing out that the central government’s efforts were an obligation.
A Bernama report that was published on Dec. 14, the day after the interview was released, highlighted the expressions of gratitude that Aceh residents felt for Malaysian’s contributions.
Residents Bernama spoke with thanked Malaysians and Malaysian PM Anwar Ibrahim for the aid and concern, saying that it had “restored the spirit of survivors”.
While Malaysia had not given direct aid to Indonesia, on Dec. 11, Anwar’s office said that it was giving RM500 ($S 157) each to Indonesian students in Malaysia affected by the disaster.
Top image, Tito Mendagri; aid distribution efforts in Simpang Kelaping Kecamatan Pegasing; via Helmy Yahya Bicara/YouTube & @explore_garo/Instagram
