Indonesia election 2024: Jokowi ‘abusing power’ by blocking candidate, former leader Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono says

Indonesia’s former leader has accused the country’s current president, Joko Widodo, of trying to determine the outcome of next year’s election

He claims Widodo has been attempting to use his position to block politician Anies Baswedan’s nomination by entangling him in a criminal case

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Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo. Photo: Reuters

Published: 7:00pm, 29 Jun 2023Updated: 10:31am, 30 Jun 2023

Indonesia’s influential former leader Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has criticised the country’s current President, Joko Widodo, and his allies for their efforts to determine the outcome of next year’s presidential election.

Yudhoyono, an ex-general who is the founder of Indonesia’s Democratic Party, made the criticism in a publication meant only to be shared among the party’s inner circle, but it has since been widely shared online.

He warned that while it was acceptable for Widodo to endorse a candidate, it would be legally wrong to use the state’s resources to help influence the outcome of the presidential race.

Former Indonesian president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has criticised the country’s current president for trying determine the outcome of next year’s election. Photo: EPA/Handout

As Widodo nears the end of his second and final five-year term, observers have increasingly described him as a “kingmaker” likely to determine the outcome of the 2024 polls.

The president – known popularly as Jokowi – has been hosting private meetings with political party leaders and has appeared to have anointed his political heir in Central Java governor Ganjar Pranowo.

Yudhoyono’s publication, titled: “The President Can Do No Wrong, 2024 Presidential Election & President Jokowi’s ‘Cawe-Cawe’”, references a Javanese term for meddling which has been associated with Widodo’s manoeuvres in recent months.

“What could make Jokowi’s ‘cawe-cawe’ an issue, is if he and his aides make moves that violate the law and/or equate to an abuse of power in order to prevent a third candidate pairing from running,” Yudhoyono wrote.

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