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Cabinet secretary’s son to run in Kediri regency election
Dhito is not the only political blueblood set to take part in the upcoming regional elections.
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President Joko Widodo (left) accompanied by Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung prepares to lead a limited meeting (ratas) at the Bogor Palace, West Java, on Tuesday, Feb. 2. The discussion was on the country's readiness for the impact of the coronavirus on the economy. (Antara/Hafidz Mubarak A)
H
anindhito Himawan Pramana, the son of Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung, confirmed his intention to take part in Kediri regency election in East Java, adding to the tally of children of government officials and politicians who will run in this year’s regional elections.
"If asked whether I am ready or not, I am ready. But now I am still communicating with the leaders of a number of political parties starting from the central office to the village level branches," Hanindhito or Dhito, as he is commonly known, told journalists on Saturday on the sidelines of an event at the Lirboyo pesantren (Islamic boarding school) in Kediri.
The event was also attended by his father as well as Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi and Public Works and Housing Minister Basuki Hadimuljono.
Dhito, however, added that he had yet to secure the backing of any political party to join the race, including the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), of which his father is a member.
Late last week, Dhito attended a gathering organized by PDI-P’s Kediri branch, which is led by Agus Sunoto, Pramono’s brother-in-law and Dhito's uncle. Agus told the gathering that Dhito was running in the upcoming regency election.
Pramono, a former PDI-P secretary-general, said that, as Dhito's father, he would support his son’s bid once the PDI-P declared its support for Dhito.
"Once it is decided by the PDIP [to nominate Dhito as its regent candidate] then we will communicate with the chairmen of other political parties. I meet with them almost everyday as fellow Cabinet members,” he said on Saturday.
The PDI-P holds the most seats in the Kediri Regional Legislative Council (DPRD) with 15 out of 50 seats, ahead of the National Awakening Party (PKB), which has nine seats, and the Golkar Party, which has six seats. To run in a regional election, a candidate must have the support of a party or coalition that holds at least 20 percent of seats in the DPRD.
Dhito is not the only political blueblood set to take part in the upcoming regional elections.
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s eldest son Gibran Rakabuming Raka has officially registered with the PDI-P to run in the 2020 Surakarta mayoral election in Central Java, while Jokowi's son-in-law Bobby Nasution has also registered with both the PDI-P and Golkar to run in the 2020 Medan mayoral race in North Sumatra. Vice President Ma’ruf Amin’s daughter Siti Nur Azizah is also set to run for South Tangerang mayor in Banten.
