Right time for Widodo-Megawati meet
Published on: Sunday, April 14, 2024
By: Antara News
Megawati (right) and Widodo had different preferences regarding the presidential and vice presidential candidate pairs competing in the 2024 presidential race.
JAKARTA: A senior aide to President Joko Widodo stated that the State Palace is striving to find the best time to hold a “silaturahmi” (friendly meeting) between the head of state and former president Megawati Soekarnoputri.
The month of Syawal, which marks the Eid al-Fitr celebration, is the most appropriate time for “silaturahmi”, Coordinator of President Widodo’s Special Aides, Ari Dwipayana, wrote in a short message here, Friday.
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“Mr President is so open to meet anyone, especially the nation’s noted figures,” he wrote when asked about President Widodo’s friendly meeting with Megawati during the Eid holiday season.
On Wednesday (April 10), after joining the Eid mass prayer at the Istiqlal Grand Mosque in Central Jakarta, President Widodo held an open house for the public and invited guests at Jakarta’s State Palace.
On the same day, Megawati also held a limited open house at her residence in Menteng, Jakarta, while on Thursday, President Widodo and First Lady Iriana visited Medan, North Sumatra.
ANTARA noted that Megawati, President Soekarno’s daughter and leader of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP), became the kingmaker of Widodo when he contested Indonesia’s 2014 presidential race.
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The PDIP continued its support for Widodo in his second leadership term (2019-2024).
However, Megawati and Widodo had different preferences regarding the presidential and vice presidential candidate pairs competing in the 2024 presidential race.
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Megawati and her side supported the Ganjar Pranowo-Mahful Md pair, while Widodo was in favour of the Prabowo Subianto-Gibran Rakabuming Raka pair being elected.
According to Home Minister Tito Karnavian, Indonesians currently await the Constitutional Court’s (MK’s) final ruling on the presidential election result disputes, filed by candidate pairs Anies Baswedan-Muhaimin Iskandar and Ganjar Pranowo-Mahfud MD against the General Elections Commission (KPU), since March 25.
The court is scheduled to resolve the result disputes within 14 working days since the camps of the two candidate pairs registered the disputes.
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