The Golkar Party will re-declare its support to Joko Widodo (Jokowi) as a candidate in the 2019 presidential election to demonstrate its commitment to his administration.

Golkar Party`s newly elected General Chairman Airlangga Hartarto made the statement at the Jakarta Convention Center (JCC), the venue for Golkar Party`s National Leadership Meeting (Rapimnas) held on Monday.

According to Hartarto, Golkar Party`s re-declaration of support to Jokowi, as a presidential candidate in the 2019 election, is important to demonstrate Golkar`s consistency in supporting Jokowi`s government and his candidacy in the coming presidential election.

"Despite a change in leadership in the Golkar Party, the commitment to support President Jokowi`s government for two terms has not changed," he emphasized.

Hartarto, who is also the industry minister in the current working cabinet of Jokowi, remarked that the Golkar Party, as a permanent organization, supports Jokowi both as a president until 2019 and as a presidential candidate in the 2019 election.

Meanwhile, Golkar Party Executive Chairman Nurdin Halid said the Golkar Party will consistently support Jokowi, as a presidential candidate in the 2019 election.

According to Halid, Golkar Party, through the forum of Rapimnas and the Extraordinary Congress, will issue a political statement that points to the reinstatement of support to Jokowi as a presidential candidate in the 2019 election, among others.

Golkar`s support to Jokowi as a presidential candidate in the 2019 election was decided at the Golkar Party`s Rapimnas in JCC, Jakarta, in 2016.

The Golkar Party, at a plenary meeting on Wednesday evening (Dec 13), appointed Hartarto as its definitive general chairman to replace Setya Novanto, currently detained temporarily by the Corruption Eradication Commission in a corruption case.

Hartarto was appointed as the general chairman until 2019, the remaining term of Novanto, Nurdin Halid remarked.

Golkar will hold a national leadership meeting on Dec 18, 2017, to report the results of the plenary meeting to leaders of its regional chapters.

On Dec 19-20, Golkar will hold an extraordinary national congress to install Hartarto as its general chairman.

The party has also formed an organizing committee for the leadership meeting and extraordinary congress comprising Idrus Marham, Nurdin Halid, Ibnu Munzir, and Agus Gumiwang, among others.

"The agenda of the extraordinary national congress is only one, which is to inaugurate Airlangga as the definitive general chairman of Golkar," he noted.

Hartarto was appointed since initially there were only two candidates -- Hartarto and Azis Syamsuddin -- for the post of Golkar chairman, but Syamsuddin later cancelled his candidacy, thereby making Hartarto the only candidate.

The Golkar chairman-elect Hartarto noted that his appointment had met the aspirations of all Golkar cadres from across the country

Source: ANTARA