TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko Widodo or Jokowi declined to comment when asked about presidential candidate Anies Baswedan’s sarcastic statement on ethics against third-time candidate Prabowo Subianto during the third presidential debate at Istora Senayan, Central Jakarta, on Sunday, January 7.

Jokowi just smiled and then ended the question-and-answer session with journalists after inaugurating the Pamulang-Cinere-Raya Bogor Toll Road at the Limo Utama Toll Gate in Depok City, West Java, on Monday morning, January 8, 2024. “Thank you,” he said in a low voice.

During the nearly three-hour debate last night, Anies questioned Prabowo on the ethical standards of a state leader and his capacity to uphold the state’s security and sovereignty.

Prabowo, who is running for president with Jokowi's eldest son Gibran Rakabuming Raka, said a president must adhere to ethics and must have honesty and integrity.

“This is the highest ethics, Saudara Professor Anies Baswedan, to have a clean soul, honesty, and loyalty to the people. Once again, don't let personal ambition deceive the people and endanger their safety,” said the Defense Minister.

In response, Anies mentioned alleged nepotism practices in the Defense Ministry, state-owned companies PT Teknologi Military Indonesia, Indonesia Defense Security, and the management of food estates.

Additionally, Anies questioned Prabowo's ability to uphold ethical standards since his running mate had allegedly violated them. As widely known, the Constitutional Court led by Jokowi’s brother-in-law amended the rule on the presidential age requirement, paving the way for Gibran for his candidacy. Anwar Usman was later dismissed from his post as chief justice.

“We all witnessed that there was a violation of ethics and Bapak continued to run along with a vice presidential candidate who violated ethics, which means there was a compromise on ethical standards,” Anies said.

Responding to Anies’s statement, Prabowo said that Anies had no right to talk about ethics as he had set a bad example regarding ethics, without providing further details.

This is not the first time the topic of ethics has come up between Anies Baswedan and Prabowo Subianto during the presidential debates, as it was also brought up during the first debate in mid-December 2023, which focused on issues of law, corruption, human rights, democracy, and governance.

DANIEL A. FAJRI

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