REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Former President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) on Friday heaped praises on his successor Joko Widodo (Jokowi) saying he had seen much progress achieved by the government under Jokowi and appreciates the achievements.

"I have seen President Jokowi seeking to push the nation onward to greater prosperity," SBY, who is general chairman of the Democrat Party, said in a new year political address at an office of the party in Cibinong, West Java.

The Democrat Party sees the achievements of the government and for that "we sincerely express gratitude and appreciation," he added.

SBY went on to say his party also knows that President Jokowi is serious in carrying out his duty and is set to carry on with his responsibility as a state leader.

The Democrat Party hopes that the government could keep going with even better performance, he added.

He said he noted that there are still a host of problems confronting the Indonesian people, therefore, the government still needs to work the harder.

"The Democrat Party has no intention of giving a lecture to or seeking to dictate the state and the government," he said.

He said the year 2018 is a crucial one as the country will hold simultaneous regional elections to be followed with legislative and presidential elections in 2019.

Political rivalry is already heating up ahead of the elections of new governors, regents and city mayors scheduled in June this year.

The Democrats are convinced that the President and state apparatuses already prepare anything for the state management to ensure the regional elections in 2018 and the general elections in 2019 would go smoothly, fairly and democratically, SBY said.

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