Secretary of the Surakarta mayoral administration Budi Murtono said that Jokowi had filed paperwork for the change in his residency status as a prerequisite for relocating to his private residence in Banjarsari subdistrict.
utgoing President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, who will wrap up his second and final term on Oct. 20, has filed for a request to change his residency status to Surakarta, Central Java.
Secretary of the Surakarta mayoral administration Budi Murtono said that Jokowi had filed paperwork for the change in his residency status as a prerequisite for relocating to his private residence in Banjarsari subdistrict.
"In September Pak President formally filed a request to return from Jakarta to Surakarta," Budi was quoted by Kompas.com as saying.
The official said that Jokowi had filed the request through an online civil registration system.
Budi added that Jokowi had also formally registered as a voter for the November regional head election in his hometown of Banjarsari.
Jokowi has frequently maintained that he will retire from politics and return to his hometown of Surakarta after wrapping up his second term in October.
Jokowi has also shrugged off a suggestion that he plans to seek an international role, such as United Nations secretary-general.
But some figures known for their loyalty to Jokowi have said the outgoing President might sit as an advisor to his successor Prabowo Subianto.
Gibran Rakabuming Raka, the President’s eldest son and the vice-president elect, said during a Kompas TV talk show that aired in October last year that his father should go back home to Surakarta after his presidency ended.
Gibran also said the President should abide by the presidential limit of two terms, as set out in the Constitution.
Gibran, himself a former mayor of Surakarta, is a registered voter in the city’s Banjarsari subdistrict, giving him the right to vote not only in the Surakarta mayoral election but also in the gubernatorial race in Central Java, where his former party, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), will try to defend its traditional stronghold against a candidate running a campaign riding on the popularity of Gibran and Jokowi.
Gibran was spotted accompanying former provincial police chief Ahmad Luthfi when he registered his bid with the election agency in August, drawing criticism from activists who said the apparent partisanship of the vice president-elect was improper.
Luthfi is running on the ticket of nine parties in the local legislature against former military chief Andika Perkasa of the PDI-P, the former party of Jokowi and Gibran.
A recent public opinion poll has found that Jokowi still has some influence over the Central Java race, with his ally Luthfi receiving the most support out of those who approved of the outgoing President’s performance, at above 50 percent, while Andika received less than 30 percent. (ipa)
Editor's note: This article has been updated.
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