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Didit’s visit to Jokowi, Megawati crucial to maintaining political balance: Expert
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President Prabowo Subianto's only son, Ragowo “Didit” Hediprasetyo (right), poses with former president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and his wife Iriana on March 31, 2025, the first day of Idul Fitri, at Jokowi's private residence in Solo, Central Java. (Instagram/Didit Hediprasetyo)
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resident Prabowo Subianto's only son, Ragowo “Didit” Hediprasetyo, visited former president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo at his private residence in Solo, Central Java, on Monday afternoon, shortly after he paid a visit to Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri.
Didit arrived at around 4:00 p.m. on the first day of Idul Fitri dressed in traditional batik attire and greeted the reporters waiting outside the residence with a warm smile, saying, "Eid Mubarak, minal Aidin wal faizin [may you be counted among the victors and returnees]”.
Jokowi, whose eldest son, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, serves as the current vice president, is widely seen as a key figure in securing Prabowo’s victory in last year’s presidential election. He parted ways with the PDI-P—his political vehicle for over a decade—after tacitly endorsing the Gerindra Party chairman’s presidential bid.
Experts consider Didit’s move “vital” in improving Prabowo’s communication with the nation’s elite and maintaining a political balance between Jokowi and Megawati, who served as the country’s fifth president.
“Prabowo, through Didit, wants to show the public that he is a leader who is friendly with the nation’s former heads of state,” said political analyst Adi Prayitno of think tank Parameter Politik Indonesia, as quoted by Kompas.
He further noted that it is not easy to maintain the balance considering that Jokowi and Megawati are “in serious conflict”.
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