A video showing the chairman of Indonesia’s National Democratic Party (NasDem) Surya Paloh shaking hands with President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo at an event in November 2019 has resurfaced in social media posts that falsely claim it was filmed after the 2024 presidential election. The posts claim it showed Surya “admitted his mistake” in backing the candidacy of Anies Baswedan over frontrunner Prabowo Subianto, who ran on a ticket with Jokowi’s eldest son, Gibran Rakabuming Raka.
“The moment when Surya Paloh kisses Jokowi’s hand and admitted his mistake and defeat,” reads Indonesian-language text on a clip shared on TikTok here on February 20, 2024.
The clip, which has been viewed more than 271,000 times, shows Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo shaking hands with Surya Paloh before the NasDem Party chairman bows deeply.
The video’s Indonesian-language caption reads: “A moment when Surya Paloh kisses Mr. Jokowi’s hand in a meeting in the State Palace!”
The clip was shared days after Jokowi and Surya had a closed-door meeting at the State Palace on February 18, according to local news site Tempo.co (archived link).
The meeting was held four days after Indonesia’s 2024 presidential election, which saw NasDem backing the candidacy of Anies Baswedan rather than frontrunner Prabowo Subianto, who ran on a ticket with Jokowi’s eldest son Gibran Rakabuming Raka.
Preliminary official results put Prabowo on course to win by a wide margin. According to an official tally from March 5, 2024, Prabowo was leading with 58.8 percent of the votes.
The Tempo.co report about the Jokowi-Surya meeting said: “Several parties have also speculated that Sunday’s meeting was Jokowi’s attempt to sway Surya Paloh to join Prabowo’s camp.”
Similar clips were elsewhere on TikTok here and here, on SnackVideo here and on Facebook here, racking up more than 572,000 views.
But the clip does not show Jokowi and Surya following their meeting after the 2024 presidential election, it has in fact circulated since November 2019.
NasDem anniversary
A keyword search on YouTube found the same clip used in a video posted on the official channel of the Presidential Secretariat here on November 12, 2019 (archived link).
The video’s title reads, “President Jokowi Attending Nasdem Party Anniversary Ceremony, Jakarta, November 11, 2019″.
The clip used in the misleading post was taken from the YouTube video’s 6:41 mark. It shows Jokowi and Surya shaking hands as the president is leaving the event.
Below are screenshot comparisons between the clip used in the false post (left) and the original video from November 2019 (right):
The clip was also embedded in a November 2019 article on the Indonesian president’s website here (archived link).
At the time, Surya’s NasDem Party were a part of Jokowi’s governing coalition (archived link).
Jokowi announced NasDem were having their own coalition in May 2023, after they endorsed Anies as a presidential candidate (archived link). However, NasDem insisted they were still committed to the coalition (archived link).
AFP has previously debunked other misinformation related to the 2024 election here.
David Turner is a globe-trotting journalist who brings a global perspective to our readers. With a commitment to shedding light on international events, he explores complex geopolitical issues, offering a nuanced view of the world’s most pressing challenges.
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