Indonesia needs brave and people-centric leader: President Jokowi

Jakarta, The Gulf Observer: President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has said that Indonesia needs a future leader who is brave and close to the people.

“Our people, the Indonesian people, need a leader who understands their needs, is determined to work hard for them, and is brave to fight for their interests,” Jokowi said during a forum held by Relawan Jokowi here on Sunday.

Relawan Jokowi is a group of social organizations and volunteers supporting the president.

He emphasized that the people also need a leader who understands Indonesia’s potential and strengths.

“The leader should also be able to take advantage of the existing opportunities,” he remarked.

Jokowi added that the future leader of Indonesia must know how to develop economic and political strategies to deal and compete with other countries.

He warned that if the wrong leader is chosen, Indonesia could lose the opportunity to become a developed country in the next 13 years.

Jokowi also pointed to the example of Latin American countries, which he said had become developing countries in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, but had not been able to fully capitalize on their opportunities and had remained developing countries.

He urged Indonesians to choose a future leader who would be able to optimize Indonesia’s demographic dividend and help the country become a developed country in the future.

Head of the Musra of Indonesia organizing committee, Panel Barus, handed over the results of the forum to Jokowi, including the volunteers’ recommendations regarding candidates for president and vice president for the 2024 general elections.

The presidential candidates included Chairperson of the Great Indonesia Movement (Gerindra) Party, Prabowo Subianto; Chairperson of the Party of Functional Groups (Golkar), Airlangga Hartarto; as well as the presidential candidate from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), Ganjar Pranowo.

Meanwhile, the candidates for vice president were Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Mahfud MD; Head of the Presidential Staff Office (KSP), Moeldoko; and Tourism and Creative Economy Minister Sandiaga Salahuddin Uno.

The other candidates for vice president are Head of the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin), Arsjad Rasjid, and West Java Governor Ridwan Kamil.

The registration for presidential and vice presidential candidates will start on October 19 to November 25, 2023. The general elections will be held on February 14, 2024.