Jokowi, Campaign Team Reported to Bawaslu over Russian Propaganda

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The incumbent president candidate Joko Widodo or Jokowi and several members of the National Campaign Team of Jokowi - Ma'ruf were reported to the Election Supervisory Board (Bawaslu) over an alleged election violation on the statement about Russian propaganda by the Advokat Peduli Pemilu or advocates group that care for election.

“[The report is] about speech content on Russian propaganda that we see as defamation and false news attacking one of the election participants,” said the group member Taufiqurrahman via a phone call with Tempo, Wednesday, February 6.

Read: Political Shamble Sees Jokowi`s Team Link Prabowo to Rob Allyn

Earlier, Jokowi’s statement about a party adopting Russia-style propaganda triggered a polemic. According to the former Jakarta Governor, the term refers to the dissemination of fake news, slanders, and lies.

Taufiqurrahman opined that the statement was a slander against his opponent Prabowo Subianto - Sandiaga Uno, and that should not be done during an election campaign. “We hoped the election will run smoothly. So there is no substantive attack against each other,” he noted.

Taufiqurrahman reported Jokowi and several members of the latter’s campaign team in light of Article 280 (c) and (d) of Law No. 7/2017 on Election. He submitted pieces of evidence in the form of printed media news of Jokowi’s statement and the speech video.

SYAFIUL HADI