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Constitution prevents dictatorship: Jokowi

Jakarta Post - August 9, 2017

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Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo reiterated his message on Wednesday that he would not go down the authoritarian path as the country's constitution had a checks-and-balance system that could prevent the rise of a strongman.

Speaking at an international gathering of constitutional court justices in Surakarta, his hometown, Jokowi said that the Constitution enabled each branch of government to exercise control over the other.

"Referring to our Constitution, there's not a single branch of government that can have absolute power, let alone allow a dictatorship to arise," Jokowi said as quoted by kompas.com.

Earlier on Tuesday, Jokowi said that he did not have the look of a dictator in response to criticisms that there were authoritative aspects to his recent policies. "Many people have called me authoritarian, but do I have the face of a dictator?" Jokowi said in Lubang Buaya, East Jakarta, on Tuesday.

In his statement on Wednesday, Jokowi said that the country's Constitution prevented a rule by mob, which he called a "mobocracy." "Mobocracy is when a group of people impose their values on others with force. We want a democracy that is institutionalized," he said.

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2017/08/09/constitution-prevents-dictatorship-jokowi.html.