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'I hope the debate will be lively:' President Jokowi
In the second election debate, which will focus on the economy, infrastructure and investment, Gibran will square off against vice presidential candidate from the opposition camp Muhaimin Iskandar and his father's top security minister Mahfud MD, who has been picked by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) to run alongside Ganjar Pranowo.
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President Joko “Jokowi“ Widodo greets elementary school students after inaugurating the Cirata Floating Solar Power Plant in Purwakarta regency, West Java in Nov. 9, 2023. With a capacity of 192 megawatt-peak, it is the largest floating solar plant in Southeast Asia and the third largest in the world. (Antara/) (Antara/Raisan Al Farisi)
President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo said on Friday that he expected the second election debate, which features his son Surakarta Mayor Gibran Rakabuming Raka, to be a lively one and that he had not been in touch with Prabowo Subianto's running mate in a while.
In the second election debate, which will focus on the economy, infrastructure and investment, Gibran will square off against vice presidential candidates from the opposition camp Muhaimin Iskandar and his father's top security minister Mahfud MD, who has been picked by the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) to run alongside Ganjar Pranowo.
"My hope is that the debate will be a lively one [...] I will definitely be watching, maybe from Jakarta, Bogor or Solo," Jokowi said, referring to the two presidential palaces and his private home in Surakarta.
Read also: Infrastructure, economic equality may become focal points in the VP debate
Jokowi said he had no knowledge about the preparation for the debate and that he had not been in touch with Gibran for weeks.
"If he wants to have the debate, go for it. I have not met him," Jokowi was quoted by Antara as saying.
The three presidential hopefuls, Anies Baswedan, Ganjar and Prabowo, faced off in the country's first presidential debate in early December, with candidates tackling questions on law, human rights and rising corruption in the country.
In the first of five televised debates, candidates sparred over a recent Constitutional Court ruling that changed the age requirement for candidates, effectively paving the way for 36-year-old Gibran to be named as the vice presidential candidate of Prabowo, now the frontrunner in the race.
"Many regulations have been bent according to the interests of those in power," said presidential candidate and former Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan, in his opening statement.
