Ghina Ghaliya, Jakarta – Giring Ganesha, the newly appointed Indonesian Solidarity Party (PSI) acting chairman, has declared his intention of running in the 2024 presidential election.
The former vocalist of pop rock band Nidji revealed his plan during a virtual press conference on Monday, during which he responded to reports of several billboards bearing his photo, the PSI's logo and the slogan "Giring for President 2024" erected in several cities.
"I will run for president in 2024. Please allow me the opportunity to serve all the people. I believe we will stand up for an increasingly victorious Indonesia," Giring said.
The 37-year-old said his candidacy was driven by the party's concern that young people would make up half of the total eligible voters in 2024 and therefore they needed to have a young leader.
The PSI has billed itself as a political party for the young and has a strong social media presence. It has declared support for President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's administration.
He said his main agenda for 2024 was to achieve more equal access to education, stating that the country's demographic bonus should not be a demographic disaster.
"These young people must be equipped with knowledge and skills through easy access to education and learning," he said.
Giring said he and PSI chairwoman Grace Natalie had met with the President to tell him about his candidacy, "Thank God Pak Jokowi welcomed it well."
PSI secretary-general Raja Juli Antoni said the party would do everything in its power to support Giring's candidacy while constructing party infrastructure in the regions.
"We have instructed the party members to promote Giring. Now there are many billboards everywhere in the districts and cities. That's part of our efforts," he said.
In late 2018, Giring decided to take a hiatus from his musical career to focus on politics.
He ran in the legislative election in 2019, however, he did not get a seat in the House of Representatives after the party failed to meet the legislative threshold at the national level of 4 percent of the total vote.
Besides Giring, another young figure, Democratic Party chairman Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono stated in February that he would run for president in 2024.
The 42-year-old ran for governor of Jakarta in 2017 but he failed to get to the second round against the two other candidates, Anies Baswedan and Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama.