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Coalition parties defend Jokowi’s politicking
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President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo makes a statement at the presidential palace in Bogor, West Java, on April 29, 2022. (AFP/Handout)
Members of the governing coalition have dismissed accusations that President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has engaged in political activity unbefitting of his office ahead of the 2024 general election, saying the President “should not be neutral” and that his involvement in political discussions with party leaders “cannot be avoided”.
On May 2, the President hosted a private meeting with the leaders of six pro-government parties, excluding the NasDem Party, at Merdeka Palace in Jakarta. Jokowi reportedly briefed the group on a possible alliance for the 2024 presidential election, which drew a flurry of accusations that the President was meddling in the upcoming elections.
Former president Jusuf Kalla has advised Jokowi to steer clear of politics in the final years of his presidency and follow in the footsteps of his predecessors Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) and Megawati Soekarnoputri to allow for free competition in the presidential election.
Kalla also criticized Jokowi's decision not to invite NasDem Party leader Surya Paloh to the meeting
On Thursday, two days after the meeting, Jokowi for the first time acknowledged that NasDem, while some of its members were still part of his Cabinet, was no longer on his side. He said it would have been inappropriate to invite Surya to a meeting discussing election strategies.
A day later, in a meeting with one of Jokowi’s closest allies, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Surya sent a message to Jokowi to stay neutral and stop appearing to endorse certain candidates, describing the practice as “unhealthy”, according to NasDem executive Sugeng Suparwoto.
‘Cannot be avoided’
