REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, YOGYAKARTA -- Secretary General (Secretary General) of PDI Struggle (PDIP) Hasto Kristiyanto responds to President Joko Widodo's (Jokowi) statement that a President can campaign and take part in elections. He said he was not surprised by Jokowi's remarks.

“It has been predicted for a long time,” Hasto said at Yogyakarta Cultural Park (TBY) on Wednesday (24/1/2024) evening.

He said Jokowi's statement received negative sentiment from people who want fair elections, and who want elections to provide protection for all without discrimination. He also appealed for a head of state to protect the entire nation and the entire bloodshed of Indonesia.

“Ensuring that the sovereignty of the people is truly put forward by electing a leader who has ideas, popular commitment, loyalty to young children, and is able to be accountable to more than 270 million Indonesians so that power is not put forward but the ideas and track record of that leader that our national leaders should be able to lift,” he said.

The PDIP hopes that President Jokowi can exercise his legacy as leader. According to him, the success of a leader is also measured by how to prepare his successors through a democratic and accountable process.

When asked how PDIP General Chairman Megawati Soekarnoputri responded to Jokowi's statement, Hasto said Megawati contemplated listening to the voices of the people from various circles, and gave instructions to the entire Ganjar-Mahfud reconciliation team to go down to the people.

“The voice is from the people, not from the elite,” he said.

Earlier President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) confirmed that a President is allowed to campaign during elections. In addition, Jokowi said that a president can also side with a certain candidate.

“The important thing is that the president can campaign. The president can take sides. Yes,” Jokowi said at the Halim Perdanakusuma AU military base in Jakarta, Wednesday (24/1/2024).

In addition to being a public official, he said, the president is also a political official. Nevertheless, Jokowi reiterated during the campaign, the president should not use state facilities.

To ensure there are no conflicts of interest, Jokowi also stressed that in campaigning not to use state facilities. When asked if he would use the opportunity to campaign, Jokowi did not answer clearly.

“Yes I may campaign but the important thing is not to use state facilities,” he said.

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