Former VP Jusuf Kalla Declares Support for Anies Baswedan in 2024 Election

Liputan6.com, Makassar - Former vice president Jusuf Kalla (JK) has declared support for Anies Baswedan in his presidential bid. Jusuf Kalla, a veteran politician and influential conglomerate, said he has always supported Anies.

"I actually have been supporting Anies personally," said Jusuf Kalla in his hometown Makassar, capital of South Sulawesi Province, on Tuesday (19/12).

The 81-year-old politician said he previously could not openly support Anies due to his position as the head of the Indonesian Red Cross.

Interestingly, JK did not cite his political connection with President Joko Widodo as his reason. Among the three presidential candidates, Anies is widely seen as an anti-Jokowi figure. Anies is the only one who is openly against President Jokowi's landmark program of relocating the capital to Kalimantan.

Jusuf Kalla was a vice president for President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in 2004 to 2009, and then he became VP again with Joko Widodo.

Both Anies Baswedan and Joko Widodo are former governors of the capital Jakarta, although Widodo did not finish his term to join the presidential election in 2014.

The spokesperson of Jusuf Kallah said he did not want the people to vote for the wrong leader. JK is said to view Anies Baswedan as his "political student".

"For JK, who worked as the VP of the Republic of Indonesia for two periods, Anies is his political student. In terms of intelligence, experience, honesty, and integrity, Anies is excelling on those things," said JK's spokesperson, Husain Abdullah.

Merdeka.com contributed to this report.