JAKARTA: President Prabowo Subianto's only son, Ragowo 'Didit' Hediprasetyo, visited former president Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo at his private residence in Solo, Central Java, on Monday (March 31) afternoon, shortly after he paid a visit to Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) chairwoman Megawati Soekarnoputri.
Didit arrived at around 4:00pm on the first day of Aidil Fitri dressed in traditional batik attire and greeted the reporters waiting outside the residence with a warm smile, saying, "Eid Mubarak, minal Aidin wal faizin [may you be counted among the victors and returnees]”.
Jokowi, whose eldest son, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, serves as the current vice president, is widely seen as a key figure in securing Prabowo’s victory in last year’s presidential election.
He parted ways with the PDI-P—his political vehicle for over a decade — after tacitly endorsing the Gerindra Party chairman’s presidential bid. Experts consider Didit’s move “vital” in improving Prabowo’s communication with the nation’s elite and maintaining a political balance between Jokowi and Megawati, who served as the country’s fifth president.
“Prabowo, through Didit, wants to show the public that he is a leader who is friendly with the nation’s former heads of state,” said political analyst Adi Prayitno of think tank Parameter Politik Indonesia, as quoted by Kompas. He further noted that it is not easy to maintain the balance considering that Jokowi and Megawati are “in serious conflict”.
Meanwhile, PDI-P spokesperson Ahmad Basarah said that Didit’s visit to Megawati’s house on Jl. Teuku Umar in Central Jakarta on the first day of Aidil Fitri represented a form of “amity” between the President’s family and the de facto opposition leader, noting that the party leaders are on good terms.
The PDI-P and Gerindra have planned a meeting between Megawati and Prabowo several times, but to no avail.
After Didit’s visit to Teuku Umar, Basarah assured that “it’s only a matter of time” before a meeting between both senior politicians will take place.
In addition to Didit, Jokowi’s former close aide, now-National Economic Council Chairman Luhut Pandjaitan, also paid a visit to Solo on Monday.
The 77-year-old flew from Jakarta after attending Prabowo’s open house gathering at the State Palace.
“We plan to visit Pak Jokowi’s home after celebrating with President Prabowo,” Luhut told reporters, later explaining that the former president has been following recent economic developments and was expressing his best wishes to his successor.
“[Jokowi] told me, ‘Pak Luhut, give [Prabowo] advice as well.’ I told him that, yes, whenever we submit any reports, Pak Prabowo asks for detailed suggestions and I can see that he is very mindful of that,” he continued. - The Jakarta Post/ANN
