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I’m no dictator: Jokowi
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President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo (right) opens the National Competition for Martial Arts Academy in Lubang Buaya, East Jakarta, on Aug.8. (Antara/Puspa Perwitasari)
F
ormer president Soeharto was nicknamed “the smiling general,” even though he was widely feared for his authoritarian brand of leadership that allowed him to rule over the country for 32 years.
Nearly a decade after Soeharto’s death, Indonesia’s current leader, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, is rebuffing a label circulating on social media calling him an authoritarian leader, or a dictator, after his government issued a number of controversial policies and a string of arrests of people accused of “insulting” him.
Jokowi used an opportunity at the National Competition for Martial Arts Academy on Tuesday to address recent social media accusations. Speaking to some 100 teenage athletes, Jokowi said they should not be afraid of the President just because some netizens accused him of being a dictator.
“Don’t be afraid. Your president is not a dictator. Nowadays, many people on social media are saying that President Jokowi is authoritarian or a dictator,” he said after asking an athlete to step onto the podium to answer a question, triggering laughter in the audience.
The President then joked that he did not have the looks to qualify as a dictator.
“How could a face like this be a dictator?” he said.
Jokowi is known for using his features, which he described as ndeso (country bumpkin), to counter negative issues raised by opponents. During the 2014 presidential campaign, for example, false information claiming Jokowi is actually of Chinese descent and was born in Singapore widely circulated the internet.
