Pledge on poverty

Widodo vows to be ‘merciless’ in bid to lift Indonesia’s fortunes

I NDONESIAN Presi dent Joko Widodo was sworn in for his second and final five-year term with pledges to champion democracy and take bolder actions against poverty and entrenched corruption in the world’s most populous Muslim-majority nation.

Known for his down-toearth style, Mr Widodo opted for an austere ceremony at the heavily guarded parliament in contrast to the festive parade and horse-drawn carriage at his first inauguration. A knife attack by an Islamic militant couple against his security minister on October 10 prompted a security crackdown.

On his way to the ceremony, Mr Widodo left his convoy and shook the hands of supporters, who waved national flags, yelled his name and called him “bapak,” or father.

After taking his oath before the Koran, the Muslim holy book, Mr Widodo laid out ambitious targets to help Indonesia join the ranks of the world’s developed nations by its centennial in 2045.

He said he expects poverty – which afflicts close to 10 per cent of Indonesia’s nearly 270 million people – to be just about wiped out and the country’s annual GDP to reach $7 trillion by then. “For those who are not serious, I’ll be merciless. I would definitely fire people,” Mr Widodo warned.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan were among the dignitaries attending. President Donald Trump sent Secretary of Transportation Elaine Chao for the ceremony in Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s largest economy and a member of the G-20 bloc of nations.

After decades of dictatorship under President Suharto, the country was convulsed by political, ethnic and religious unrest in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Since then, it has consolidated its democratic transition. While most of the country remains poor and inequality is rising, it is home to a rapidly expanding middle class.