REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA - Indonesia's losing presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto said on Friday his party would support President-elect Joko Widodo, but would not hesitate to criticize any of his policies that they opposed.
Prabowo met with Widodo or popularly known as Jokowi, for the first time publicly since the former Jakarta governor was declared the winner of Indonesia's July 9 presidential election, the closest ever. Jokowi takes office on Monday.
The comments from Prabowo, who leads the opposition coalition that controls parliament, should help ease concerns from Indonesian and foreign investors of political gridlock in Southeast Asia's largest economy.
"I conveyed that the party I lead, my supporters, I will ask them to support Joko Widodo and the government he will lead," he told reporters after their meeting in Jakarta.
"When there are things that we judge to be not for the benefit of the people...we will not hesitate to criticize."
Prabowo, who is a former general, congratulated Jokowi and saluted him after the press conference.
"Our objectives are the same ... everything will be done for the good of the nation," Jokowi told reporters.
The prospect of a fuel price hike to bring down a worrying fiscal deficit, and Prabowo's soothing words gave heart to investors in Indonesian assets. The stock market rose around 1 percent, as did the rupiah currency, while 10-year government bond yields eased.
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