President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo inaugurated Inspector General Eddy Hartono as the new Head of the National Counterterrorism Agency (BNPT) in a ceremony held at the State Palace on Wednesday, September 11, 2024.
The event also marked the swearing-in of Saifullah Yusuf, commonly known as Gus Ipul, as the Minister of Social Affairs.
Besides Eddy and Saifullah, the president also inaugurated Aida Suwandi Budiman as member of the Board of Commissioners of the Deposit Insurance Corporation (LPS), as outlined in Presidential Decree No. 101P/2024.
At 57 years old, Eddy Hartono succeeds Commissioner General Rycko Amelza Dahniel.
A graduate of the Police Academy in 1990, Eddy has built a career with a focus on counterterrorism.
He began his career as a Junior Investigator in the Cybercrime Subdirectorate of the Crime Investigation Department (Bareskrim) of the National Police in 2008.
He gained further prominence as Police Chief of Hulu Sungai Selatan regency in South Kalimantan in 2009.
Eddy became widely known during his tenure as Head of the National Counterterrorism Special Detachment (Densus 88) from 2015 to 2017.
He later served as Deputy Head of Densus 88 from 2017 to 2018.
In 2018, Eddy transitioned to BNPT, where he was appointed Director of Law Enforcement at the Office of Deputy for Operations and Capacity Building.
By 2021, he had taken on the role of Senior Police Trainer at the Police Education and Training Center, focusing on personnel development and training.
Eddy’s extensive experience in counterterrorism and law enforcement makes him well-positioned to lead BNPT in its mission to combat terrorism threats in Indonesia.