But now, with the constitution barring him from running for a third term, Widodo — widely known as Jokowi — appears reluctant to give up control over Indonesia's future, say political scientists, watchdog groups and a growing number of the president's former allies and supporters.
Critics say Widodo is exercising too much influence ahead of the February 14 election to replace him, trying to tip the contest in favor of Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, who has become a close ally. They accuse Widodo of engineering a court decision that would pave the way for his son to run for vice president with Prabowo. They say Widodo was campaigning for Prabowo, even though presidents in Indonesia are not legally allowed to campaign.
Furthermore, village officials reported that they were being pressured to support Prabowo in exchange for resources from the Widodo administration, according to the election monitoring group Perlodem. The campaign teams of the other two presidential candidates – former Central Java Governor Jangar Pranowo and former Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan – say their volunteers and supporters were harassed by security forces and prevented from carrying out campaign activities. The army and police rejected these accusations.
“The situation is really unfair,” candidate Genjar said in an interview. “We are prepared for it to continue to be unfair.”
Rwanda's Wande Tuturong, appointed by the president's office to answer questions and serve as deputy chief of staff, said Widodo “wants his legacy to continue.” Tutorong said Widodo relied on his “strengths and capital” to achieve this and had not violated any laws.
Widodo's defenders say he should be allowed to make major efforts to defend his legacy, which includes efforts to create a supply chain for electric vehicle manufacturing in Indonesia and an ambitious multi-billion-dollar plan to build a new capital to replace Jakarta.
“Decade [Widodo] “It was amazing,” said Budi Ari Setiadi, head of the Brojo Group, a 7 million-strong group of pro-Widodo volunteers who now support Prabowo. “It must continue.”
Opinion polls show Prabowo, a former general with a history of alleged human rights abuses, leading the other candidates by 20 points, although he is not guaranteed to get the 51 percent of the vote he needs to avoid a runoff. Analysts say Widodo – whose approval rating reaches 80 percent – will play a decisive role. The president has increased his public appearances with Prabowo ahead of the vote, and recently asserted, with Prabowo at his side, that presidents have the right to campaign on behalf of others, prompting complaints to Indonesia's Electoral Supervisory Board.
His embrace of Prabowo has divided Indonesia's political elite. It has also raised concerns that democracy may be at risk in one of Asia's few remaining democratic bright spots.
“What we are seeing are very brazen attacks on democratic norms and institutions,” said Made Supriyatma, a visiting fellow at the Singapore-based Yusuf Ishak Institute (ISEAS). He said he believed these elections would be the most unfair in Indonesia since the overthrow of dictator Suharto in 1998. Usman Hamid, head of Amnesty International Indonesia, agreed, as did Gunawan Muhammad, founder of the investigative news magazine Tempo and one of Indonesia's most prominent public intellectuals.
He supported Mohamed Widodo in 2014 and 2019, and said that until recently he believed that Widodo was the best president for the country. “Suddenly, in the end, things went very wrong,” said 82-year-old Mohammed.
Widodo (62 years old) was born in a slum on the banks of the river, and worked as a furniture maker before becoming mayor of the Javanese city of Solo and then governor of the Jakarta region. He was known for his down-to-earth leadership style, and would often show up unexpectedly at markets and mosques to talk to people about everyday issues such as the price of rice.
In 2014, he turned Indonesian politics upside down by defeating Prabowo, an establishment figure, in the presidential election. That year, Widodo, wearing traditional Indonesian batik clothing, was photographed on the cover of Time magazine, which described him as a “force for democracy.”
Widodo promised reform. But during his two terms in office, he failed to deliver in many respects, civil society groups say. Despite his election campaign centered on an anti-corruption platform, Widodo weakened the powers of the country's corruption investigation board. He has rolled back environmental protections and worker protections in a job creation bill, abandoning his former ally, China's Christian ruler, who has been persecuted by conservative Islamic hardliners, human rights activists say.
Tutorong, the deputy chief of staff, said Widodo was forced to abandon his initial election promises in order to “build an effective government.”
In his second term, as he struggled to consolidate power among divided parties, Widodo brought oligarchs, former generals and religious conservatives into his government. Prabowo, who had once disavowed him, was appointed defense minister. Tutorong said Prabowo's addition to the government was part of an attempt to bridge political divisions in the face of challenges such as the Covid-19 pandemic.
Prabowo (72 years old) was a high-ranking leader during the Suharto era and was married to the dictator's daughter. International human rights organizations and foreign governments have long accused Prabowo of committing egregious human rights abuses under Suharto, alleging that he ordered the kidnapping of student activists and oversaw the torture and massacres of independence fighters in East Timor and elsewhere.
Prabowo was dishonorably discharged from the army in 1998 but was never charged with any criminal charges. He sought to return to the political arena, but after losing the 2014 and 2019 elections to Widodo, it was widely expected that he would retire from politics. So, when Widodo invited Prabowo into his government, he “almost single-handedly revived” Prabowo's political career, said Supriatma, of ISEAS.
Although Prabowo was banned for decades from entering the United States due to his alleged involvement in atrocities, he was allowed to visit Washington in 2020 as defense minister. Two years later, he became the first person to announce his candidacy for the presidency and, in a stunning reversal, presented himself as Widodo's heir.
“I really think we should keep it all going [Widodo] “We did it,” Prabowo said one recent afternoon to a crowd of supporters in Jakarta. “I will continue all his programmes. I say that firmly.”
Until a few months ago, Widodo was expected to support Jangar, the candidate put forward by his party, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P). But major differences led to a rift between the president and the Militant Democratic Party.
In April last year, when protests broke out in Muslim-majority Indonesia over whether Israel would be allowed to participate in a soccer tournament, Widodo publicly disagreed with Indonesian Democratic Party leaders who sided with the protesters. The demonstrations prompted FIFA to strip Indonesia of its right to host the U-20 Men's World Cup, a development Widodo described as “sad and disappointing.”
Then in October, Indonesia's Constitutional Court voted 5-4 to allow candidates under the age of 40 to run for president or vice president if they had previously been elected to the office — a cut largely seen as benefiting Widodo's son. , Gibran Rakabuming Raka, 36 years old. – A year-old mayor. Widodo's son-in-law, Chief Justice Anwar Osman, cast the deciding vote. Within days of the decision, Prabowo announced that Widodo's son would be his deputy.
Widodo says he had nothing to do with the court's decision, and Othman denied any wrongdoing, saying only that he acted according to his “conscience.” But the Ethics Commission found Othman guilty of “serious violations” and removed him from his position as chief justice of the Supreme Court. The court's ruling was allowed to stand.
The party responded by accusing Widodo of “withdrawing” from the party. Political scientists said it was one of the most overt attempts to build a dynasty in modern Indonesia. Some of Widodo's most prominent supporters resigned from their positions in the administration, citing their opposition to the court action.
But Budiman Sudjatmiko, a senior party member who defected to support Prabowo, said: “The most important thing for us now is to continue.” He added Widodo's continued influence.
