Jakarta. Both former Presidents, Megawati Soekarnoputri and Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, did not attend the 2024 State of the Nation Address

Puan Maharani, Chair of the Indonesian House of Representatives and PDI-P central board leader, revealed that Fifth President Megawati Soekarnoputri was absent from President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's State of the Nation address at the parliament compound on Friday, citing another engagement.

“She can’t attend; there’s another event,” Puan, Megawati’s daughter, said at the parliamentary complex.

Puan did not specify Megawati’s other commitment but confirmed that the PDI-P chairwoman would attend the party’s 79th Indonesia Independence Day ceremony in Jakarta on Saturday and would likely miss the ceremony at Indonesia's new capital Nusantara. Puan emphasized that Megawati’s absence was not due to health concerns. “No worries; she’s in good health,” she concluded.

Former President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was also absent from the session. Yudhoyono, commonly known as SBY, remained in his hometown Pacitan, East Java, to commemorate the first anniversary of the SBY-Ani Museum, according to his son, Edhie Baskoro Yudhoyono.

Megawati and her party, PDI-P, endorsed Jokowi in the 2014 and 2019 elections, but their relationship soured in the 2024 election after Gerindra Party chairman Prabowo Subianto nominated Gibran, Jokowi's oldest son, as his running mate. Prabowo eventually won with the support of Jokowi's voters, while Ganjar Pranowo, the PDI-P candidate, finished last in the election despite leading in the polls beforehand.

Megawati recently said her relationship with the president “is doing fine,” although she acknowledged a past disagreement regarding the presidential term.

Meanwhile, SBY supported Jokowi in the 2024 election. President Jokowi rewarded the party by appointing Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, the chair of the Democratic Party and SBY’s oldest son, as the Agrarian Affairs Minister.

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