TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Rumors that President Joko Widodo or Jokowi is approaching the Golkar Party resurfaced after a plenary meeting to evaluate the results of the 2024 election at the Golkar Party DPP office in West Jakarta yesterday. When asked by reporters, Golkar chairman Airlangga Hartarto said that President Jokowi and the party were already close.

"Pak Jokowi and the Golkar Party are indeed close," Airlangga said, greeted by laughter from other Golkar Party officials at the post-meeting press conference on Sunday, March 10.

Airlangga said their closeness could be seen in Golkar Party advertisements featuring Jokowi, which indicated Jokowi's intimacy and comfort with Golkar.

The deputy chairman of the Golkar Party, Ahmad Doli Kurnia, expressed similar sentiments. He said that Golkar's good relationship with Jokowi was established because the party had consistently supported and backed the president.

"In fact, we often joke that the Golkar Party is 'more Jokowi' than other political parties," he said when met after the press conference.

Doli added that Golkar is an open party that seeks to unite all elements of the nation.

"Never mind the president. Even if it is just an ordinary person, if [the party] feels that they share the same aspirations, interests, struggles and values, they would be welcome to join Golkar. We would be happy with any member of society, let alone a president," he said.

Doli said Golkar would be very happy if Jokowi wanted to join. He admitted, however, that he had not received confirmation of Jokowi's status in the PDIP.

According to him, whether Jokowi joins Golkar or not is a matter of politics. Therefore, the person with more information about discussions on the issue would be the party chairman, Airlangga Hartarto.

"These kinds of discussions would be held in private with the chairman general. So the ones who know about it would be the chairman general, Pak Jokowi, and God," he said.

ANTARA

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