[COMMENTARY] Jokowi is smarter than SBY at building a political dynasty – Opinion

Kornelius Purba (The Jakarta Post)

PREMIUM

Jakarta ●
Wed, February 17, 2021

While President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo will soon see his son Gibran Rakabuming Raka and his son-in-law Bobby Nasution take up their post as mayors of Surakarta in central Java and of Medan in north Sumatra, his predecessor, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY ), to see his retired army adult son, Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, fight to defend his presidency of the Democratic Party against an alleged “coup attempt”.

What will your conclusion be about Jokowi and SBY in preparing for their children’s political future, especially when you relate it to the 2024 concurrent elections that will include the presidential election? I think neither Gibran nor Bobby will directly follow in Jokowi’s footsteps, while SBY’s son is unlikely to fulfill his father’s ambition.

Of the seven presidents Indonesia has ever had, founding president Sukarno has proven to be the most successful in impersonating his offspring. Sukarno’s daughter, Megawati Soekarnoputri, not only became the fifth president (2001-2004), but also fully controls the nationalist-oriented Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), now the largest party in the country.