Jokowi vs Old Smear Campaigns
Outspoken economist Rizal Ramli reported media mogul Surya Paloh (who is also the chairman of Nasdem Party) to the National Police’s Criminal Investigation Division (Bareskrim POLRI) for defamation. Previously, Rizal was the one reported to the police on allegation of defamation by Taufik Basari, the head of Nasdem Party’s Legal Division. But we won’t concern ourselves with this dispute. We’re more interested in what Rizal said about President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo in a teleconference aired by TV One last month.
Bawaslu & the Reports Against Jokowi-Maruf
Several complaints have been filed to the Election Supervisory Body (Bawaslu) against President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and his running mate K.H. Ma’ruf Amin (Jokowi-Ma’ruf). One of the complaints concern alleged administrative violation in the pair’s campaign team’s use of videotrons. Sahroni is the person who filed the complaint to the Bawaslu DKI Jakarta last week on Oct. 9.
Ma’ruf Amin in Action (2)
It has been a busy week for K.H. Ma’ruf Amin, the running mate of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo. Ma’ruf visited West Java, North Sumatera, and Yogyakarta. There were rumors though that Ma’ruf had fallen ill, but he has since dismissed it.
Regional Dynamics: Reelection in North Maluku
Tomorrow (Oct. 17), the province of North Maluku will hold a reelection in six villages (Bobaneigo, Pasir Putih, Tetewang, Gamsungi, Dum-Dum, Akelamo Kao) and two sub-districts (Sanan, Taliabu Barat). On Sep. 17, the Constitutional Court (MK) ordered the reelection after finding inaccuracies in the vote tallying process in said regions. The question now is whether this will change the current outcome of the 2018 North Maluku gubernatorial election.
Jokowi and the Year of Sports & Politics
The 2018 Asian Para Games, a multi-sport continental event for athletes with different abilities, was officially closed on Saturday (Oct. 13), after a week of events in Jakarta. Indonesia stands proud in fifth position with a total of 135 medals, consisting of 37 gold, 47 silver, and 51 bronze medals. This result is historic as it represents Indonesia’s best achievement in Asian Para Games. This is another huge success for President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo after the success in the 2018 Asian Games.
The Latest Job Rotations in the Military
The Army (TNI AD) has recently conducted several, minor job rotations. Only six military generals were affected, but it’s still worth highlighting since it concerns strategic positions in the Army.
The 2019 Race: West Java
K.H. Ma’ruf Amin will soon campaign in West Java, the most populous province in the country. Ma’ruf will visit the regencies/municipalities believed to be the home of Prabowo Subianto supporters. As we all know, Jokowi lost West Java to Prabowo in the 2014 presidential race by a significant margin (around 4.6 million votes).
Bawaslu & Sarumpaet’s Lies Scandal
The Election Supervisory Body (Bawaslu) will investigate the allegation that the Prabowo-Sandi camp had violated election rules and regulation in connection to Ratna Sarumpaet’s hoax scandal. The Bawaslu will first examine two groups of Jokowi volunteers and the Jokowi-Maruf national campaign team today (Oct. 11)—they are the ones who lodged the allegation.
The 2019 Race: Riau (2)
All of the regional heads in Riau announced their endorsement of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo on Wednesday (Oct. 10). This is a massive support for Jokowi coming from the region that Jokowi lost to Prabowo in the 2014 presidential race.
Prabowo’s Indecisiveness
Weeks have passed, but the Islamic party PKS is still in a deadlock situation with their ally Gerindra Party on who shall be nominated as vice governor of Jakarta—a position Sandiaga Uno had left vacant when he decided to become Prabowo Subianto’s running mate in the 2019 presidential race. Gerindra’s Jakarta chapter continues to insist on its right to nominate, while PKS insists that Gerindra has a promise to keep. One wonder why Prabowo Subianto is silent on this matter.