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uzzards circle the vanquished, while the victor finds his bandwagon crammed with chancers. Many now claim to know him. Even more will speak as if they own the '€œWi'€. Such are the spoils of incipient power.

Confidants and political companions can profile the president-elect in detail. Yet no matter how amateurish, it may be useful to distinguish the man and the myth from a more distant perspective, detached from the intuitions of reverence and kinship.

Discerning one'€™s persona often explains what is to come better than any CV or biography would. After all, leadership is partly about intellect, all about character.

It would be pretentious to claim to know the outgoing Jakarta governor. I'€™ve met Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo on far fewer occasions than any aide would have, but with more regularity than the average voter.

Over the past five years that privilege of propinquity has come half a dozen times, with each meeting lasting on average no more than an hour, and on all occasions with myself acting in the capacity of a journalist.

It was a normal afternoon five years ago when I first sat down with a visiting Jokowi at the office of The Jakarta Post. He had built a reputation as a successful mayor of Surakarta but was not yet a headline name.

He was certainly no political force on anyone'€™s horizon. Unsurprisingly, the editorial staff largely ignored his visit, with just one senior journalist meeting him that day more out of courtesy than necessity.

Fast forward five years to a memorable July afternoon, three working days before the official announcement of the election results; the premises of the Post was brimming with glee and anticipation for Jokowi'€™s arrival.

 What was intended to be a quiet courtesy call with the editor quickly transformed into an outpouring of enthusiasm and instinctive elation by staff and neighbors.

 The Post frequently receives guests of high caliber. But the response to Jokowi was like nothing ever seen before.

People were hanging from the rafters as if to greet a rock star. Elvis had entered the building!

 It must be said that by way of impression, half a decade apart, one felt nothing different about the man, almost to the extent that the lack of outwardly impressive traits might hint at some kind of deficit. The spotlight and the gravitation of power seemed to have effected little change upon the former furniture trader.

He was still quiet by nature, inquisitive without prying, a contemplative listener before addressing; and he spoke without preaching.

In an age of narcissism where politicians have a proclivity to evangelize about themselves, one feels a need to coax the president-elect to even assert, or assume, himself.

Even his refusal to go negative during the campaign explains a lot about a man brought up in Central Java cultured in the Javanese precept of '€œSura dira jayaningrat, lebur dening pangastuti'€, which teaches that cruel traits, pettiness, and greed will be defeated by wisdom, kindness and patience.

If many remain skeptical that his '€œhumble man'€ image is mere political branding, then Jokowi is the most convincing actor ever.

During a session on his latest visit to the Post, he was taken to the conference room due to the overwhelming enthusiasm by everyone to meet him. As he was escorted inside to sit at the front of the room with the senior members of the editorial board, Jokowi replied, '€œLet me go there first to be with them'€, walking instead to the middle of the room to the delirium of the gathered throng.

It became a thrilling selfie-fest with the president-elect. But even as he was being mobbed, there was no sense that he was rushing.

Jokowi did not have to do that. The votes were already cast. This was no campaign trail. He did not have to entertain a crowd for publicity'€™s sake.

Yet his effort to break down barriers that afternoon, to infuse a mutual sense of hope and act like he was not above anyone present is why nearly 71 million Indonesians voted for him. That sort of character will serve the nation well. Jokowi, ultimately, has much to prove during his tenure, and may not be the chief executive we all want him to be. Yet he can be the president we all need.

Abdurrahman Wahid had many failings, yet he was the president we all deserved, and needed, at the time.

 His contribution was intangible but lasting in shaping a post-Soeharto democracy.

He demystified the mien of impunity attached to the palace and power. More importantly, he changed attitudes of a nation accustomed to sidelining minorities, whether regional, religious or racial.

Jokowi has the innate ability to do the same.

If there was a glimmer of change in Jokowi, it seemed more a transformation projected from within. There was more than a distinct air of confidence about him.

He understands his strengths. He understands where his forte lies and the source of his authority. And his quiet nature ought never to be mistaken for acquiescence.

During a brief conversation about the new Legislative Institution Law, which many perceive was hastily passed at the House of Representatives to give opposition legislators greater power in the face of a Jokowi presidency, the president-elect did not seem to be bothered.

He understood that with the people behind him, legislators would have to think twice about openly opposing him unnecessarily.

We are seeing more of this quiet confidence as he moves to prepare a new government.

His street-smart maneuvering in forming a transition team sends a strong signal that he will not be towed along by the demands of coalition. Whether deliberate or coincidental, the exclusion of noted factions and individuals from the team is a strong indicator of the power structure he is forming.

What is clear is that as politics unfold and the inauguration date of Oct. 20 approaches, Jokowi will become the president we will all know well enough.

The writer is chief editor of The Jakarta Post.