TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The chairman of the Gerindra Party, Prabowo Subianto, said that his party is open to the 7th president, Joko Widodo. However, Prabowo said his party could not force Jokowi to join.

"Oh, Gerindra is open, but of course, we cannot force him to join," Prabowo said after receiving Jokowi at his residence, Rumah Kertanegara, in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, on December 6, 2024.

Jokowi just laughed when asked about joining another political party after no longer being a member of the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P). The former Jakarta governor said he and Prabowo had just had dinner.

Prabowo and Jokowi dined for more than an hour in Kertanegara. Prabowo said he invited Jokowi directly when he found out that Jokowi was in Jakarta.

"He was the former president when he visited Merauke and then stopped in Solo. This time when I'm in Jakarta, it's like a return visit. Because I miss him," Jokowi said.

Earlier, PDIP secretary-general Hasto Kristiyanto insisted that Jokowi and his family were no longer members of the PDIP, although they still held the party's membership card.

"I reiterate that Mr. Jokowi and his family are no longer part of the PDIP," Hasto said at the PDIP party school in the Lenteng Agung area of South Jakarta on Wednesday, December 4, 2024.

Hasto said that Gibran Rakabuming Raka - Jokowi's eldest son - and Bobby Afif Nasution - Jokowi's son-in-law - would no longer be members of the PDIP if they were nominated by other political parties in the 2024 presidential or regional elections.

Meanwhile, Gibran, who was originally a PDIP cadre, decided to take a different stance from his party in the 2024 presidential election. The former mayor of Solo became Prabowo Subianto's vice presidential candidate in the 2024 presidential election with the support of the Indonesian Forward Coalition (KIM) - a coalition of the Gerindra Party, the Golkar Party, the Amanat National Party, the Democratic Party, the Indonesian Solidarity Party, the Crescent Star Party, and the Glory Party. Meanwhile, the PDIP has endorsed Ganjar Pranowo-Mahfud Md for the 2024 presidential election.

Jokowi and Bobby Nasution, who were also PDIP cadres, supported Gibran's political choice. Bobby then switched to the Gerindra Party. He then ran in the North Sumatra gubernatorial election with the support of KIM Plus.

Editor’s Choice: Jokowi Meets Prabowo at Kertanegara Tonight

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