TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Prabowo Subianto, a presidential candidate backed by the Onward Indonesia Coalition, responded to critics who accused him of solidifying Jokowi’s political dynasty after naming the President's eldest son, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, as his running mate in the upcoming presidential election.

He argued that a political dynasty is something normal. “This is for national education that political dynasty is normal,” he said after attending the Indonesian Solidarity Party's (PSI) declaration of support for the 2024 presidential election at the Djakarta Theater, Central Jakarta on Tuesday, October 24, 2023.

The accusation came after he and the coalition selected Solo Mayor Gibran, who is now eligible to run in the presidential election following the controversial ruling issued by the Constitutional Court on the requirements for presidential and vice presidential candidates.

Moreover, the PSI led by Jokowi’s youngest son Kaesang Pangarep declared its support for the Prabowo-Gibran pair.

Prabowo stressed that political dynasties, which he does not consider negative, also exist including within the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDIP), which is a rival to Prabowo's coalition in the 2024 presidential election.

Prabowo, who also serves as Defense Minister, also said that he has long been part of a political dynasty as he is the son of Sumitro Djojohadikusumo, a minister in the New Order era, and the grandson of Raden Mas Margono Djojohadikusumo, the founder of state lender BNI who also served in the government of Indonesia's founding father Soekarno.

He described the political dynasty as the dynasty of a patriotic family serving the nation.

“We belong to a dynasty where our family always fights for the people. What's wrong with that? Don't politicize it,” Prabowo said.

The Gerindra Party chairman hoped that candidates running in the 2024 presidential election would be assessed based on their vision and mission. “Study our program, the program of all candidate pairs. Don't bring the narrative to that (political dynasty),” Prabowo Subianto said.

SULTAN ABDURRAHMAN

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