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Domain under presidential candidates’ names on sale for billions
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Presidential and vice presidential hopefuls Prabowo Subianto (left) and Sandiaga Uno (right) wave to journalists after concluding a medical checkup in Gatot Subroto Army Hospital (RSPAD) in Jakarta on Monday, Aug. 13. The medical checkup is one of the requirements for hopefuls before being declared eligible as candidates running in the 2019 presidential election by the General Elections Commission (KPU). (Antara/Sigid Kurniawan)
T
he presidential race has been generating business opportunities for some people, including Muhammad Sigit Saputro, 31, whose business endeavor recently went viral after he offered web domains named after presidential candidate pairs for billions of rupiah.
He uploaded advertisements on his social media accounts promoting domains prabowosandi.com and prabowosandi.id for Rp 1 billion (US$68,332) per domain, in hopes that presidential candidate pair Prabowo Subianto-Sandiaga Uno would be willing to buy them.
Sigit offered domains named after incumbent President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and his running mate Ma’ruf Amin, jokowimaruf.com and jokowimaruf.id, at an even higher price — Rp 2 billion per domain. The ads have made the rounds on social media ever since.
He said he was quick to purchase prabowosandi.com and prabowosandi.id, as well as jokowimahfud.com and jokowimahfud.id on Thursday morning, before presidential candidates Prabowo and incumbent Joko “Jokowi” Widodo announced their respective partners later in the day. Each domain was purchased for Rp 250,000.
Former Constitutional Court chief justice Mahfud MD until the last minute was chalked up to be the strongest vice presidential candidate for Jokowi, but the final decision fell toward Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) chairman Ma’ruf Amin.
On Monday morning, Sigit said someone from the Prabowo-Sandiaga campaign team had contacted him. “The price is still negotiable,” Sigit told The Jakarta Post. (swd)
