TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Central Java gubernatorial hopefuls promise to reduce poverty
Although there were barely any barbs traded during the first debate, candidate Ahmad Luthfi boasted about the support he got from former President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and his successor Prabowo.
Change text size
Gift Premium Articles
to Anyone
Share the best of The Jakarta Post with friends, family, or colleagues. As a subscriber, you can gift 3 to 5 articles each month that anyone can read—no subscription needed!
Amicable foes: Central Java gubernatorial candidate Andika Perkasa (left) shakes hands with rival Ahmad Luthfi (second left) while their respective running mates Hendrar Prihadi (second right) and Taj Yasin (right) follow suit after their first public debate at the Marina Convention Center, Semarang, Central Java, on Wednesday. (Antara /Makna Zaezar)
The Central Java gubernatorial candidates faced each other in the first official debate on Wednesday night, with both candidate pairs promising to alleviate poverty if elected as the province’s new leaders.
Held at the Marina Convention Center in the city of Semarang, Central Java, it was the first in a series of three debates that will be held before the country’s simultaneous regional elections on Nov. 27. The second and final debates are slated to be held on Nov. 10 and Nov. 20.
Governor hopeful Andika Perkasa, who runs on the sole ticket of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), touched upon the need to quickly combat poverty in the region, as he mentioned that 10.4 percent of people in Central Java are still living on the poverty line.
The former Indonesian Military (TNI) commander also promised “bureaucratic reform” to help improve the public service index in the province, which he claimed was “worsening in the last three years”, along with Central Java’s economy and democracy index.
On the other hand, rival candidate Ahmad Luthfi promised cheap food subsidies, free healthcare and education in his programs to improve the people’s welfare. Like Andika, he believed this could be achieved through “good and clean governance”.
Read also: Plan for Prabowo-Megawati meeting resurfaces ahead of regional polls
Luthfi, a former police general, is backed by the big alliance of the Onward Indonesia Coalition (KIM) led by President Prabowo Subianto’s Gerindra Party. He is also an ally of former president and ex-PDI-P member Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, who tacitly endorsed Prabowo in February’s presidential election and gave his blessing to eldest son Gibran Rakabuming Raka to run with the former Army general.
