Over an afternoon cup of tea on Thursday, the former Jakarta governor and Prabowo, his former rival in the 2014 presidential race, discussed the state of the country on the veranda of the Presidential Palace.

The two had tea after a lunch at the palace. This time, it was Jokowi’s treat.

“It was fried rice in Hambalang; here, it was grilled fish,” Prabowo said to the media, drawing a giggle from Jokowi.

Prabowo was referring to a meeting between the two at his residence in Sentul, West Java, on Oct. 31.

Given the series of recent events making national headlines, the meeting of the two high-profile politicians triggered speculation over a possible connection with massive public pressure on the authorities to charge Jakarta’s incumbent gubernatorial candidate Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama.

A large-scale rally, staged on Nov. 4 by conservative Muslim groups, pushed for Ahok’s prosecution over alleged blasphemy. Jokowi said he suspected political actors behind the rally, with some observers believing the protests were also aimed at undermining Jokowi’s administration.

The National Police eventually acted in line with the demands by naming Ahok a suspect on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Jokowi continued a tour of meetings with some of the nation’s most influential figures that began last month. Jokowi visited the headquarters of the country’s armed forces as well as Islamic organizations and political parties.

“I believe visiting each other and engaging in friendly gatherings is an excellent tradition,” Jokowi said in his opening remarks before the media. “And I do hope this tradition will also be seen at the middle and lower levels [of various elements in the country].”

During the lunch, the two shared their commitment to put the interests of the nation first and respect the principles laid out in the state ideology of Pancasila and the motto of “unity in diversity”, Jokowi said.

It was the fourth meeting between the two after Jokowi won the 2014 election.

“Pak Prabowo and I shared our commitment to maintaining the diversity of Indonesia,” Jokowi said.

“We both do not want to see us [the nation] fall apart due to political differences. No, because that would do great harm to the country,” Jokowi told the media after the tea talk on the veranda, which Jokowi often uses to talk with state guests or with Vice President Jusuf Kalla.

The meeting, Prabowo added, was aimed at showing the young generation a culture that respected differences and that every leader in the country had a duty to maintain unity and peace. “He once was my rival, but we maintain our friendship,” Prabowo said.

Earlier on Thursday, Jokowi met Setya at the Presidential Palace in which Jokowi, according to Setya, had “asked Golkar to play a part in maintaining peace in the country”. Unlike the meeting with Prabowo, the talk with Setya was held behind closed doors, with no arranged photo session for the media.

However, the two meetings that day raise questions about whether Jokowi, who has met a total of five party leaders, will also have a meeting with his predecessor Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who has been throwing a salvo of accusations at Jokowi recently.

Relations between the two became visibly tense earlier this month when Yudhoyono launched a tirade against the government, accusing it of producing a false intelligence report about him masterminding the Nov. 4 rally. Only hours after the rally, Jokowi firmly said he suspected political actors behind the rally, but, to date, he has not divulged their identity.

Presidential spokesman Johan Budi said he had yet to receive any information on whether Jokowi was planning to meet Yudhoyono in the near future.

Contacted separately, Democratic Party deputy chairman Roy Suryo suggested that the President would meet with Yudhoyono too.

“I guess it is just a matter of time, Jokowi will meet Yudhoyono,” Roy told The Jakarta Post.

Senior Democratic Party politician and also a deputy chairman, Syariefuddin Hasan, said, “It’s only about inviting and being invited. As an opposition party, we just provide our input on governance. If they invite us [to the Palace], it means they respect us and are willing to take our advice,” Syarief said.

Popular

Volcano erupts in North Sulawesi, hundreds evacuated

Dubai roads, airport reel from floods after record rains

Ramadan boosts consumer confidence, retail sales