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Lemhannas governor’s resignation revives conflict of interest debate
Andi Widjajanto, a former election campaign strategist for President Jokowi, will resign from his position as Lemhannas governor, prompting fresh calls for other officials to follow his lead ahead of campaign season.
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Andi Widjajanto emerges from an official car at the Presidential Palace in Central Jakarta in 2017. (tribunnews.com/Dani Permana)
Andi Widjajanto, a former election campaign strategist for President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, is expected to resign from his position as governor of the National Resilience Institute (Lemhannas), prompting fresh calls for other officials to do the same ahead of campaign season.
Andi announced his intention to leave to the Lemhannas staff on Monday, suggesting it was to “maintain the institution’s neutrality” ahead of the 2024 election.
“This morning I said my goodbyes to Lemhannas after stepping down as governor,” he was quoted by kompas.com as saying in a statement.
“A formal resignation to the President will be submitted once I am officially registered as a member of the national campaign team [TPN] of Ganjar for President with the General Elections Commission [KPU].”
The update follows Andi’s inclusion in Ganjar’s campaign team last week. With the campaign registration period set to open on Thursday, Ganjar is expected to run on an election ticket backed by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) and its coalition partners.
On Oct. 12, the head of Ganjar’s campaign team and chairman of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin), Arsjad Rasjid, revealed that Andi had officially joined its ranks.
Andi advised on Jokowi’s presidential campaigns in the successful 2014 and 2019 elections and served in the administration as cabinet secretary and advisor to the presidential chief of staff, before becoming the governor of Lemhannas, a position that is equal to a cabinet minister.
