Jakarta. President Prabowo Subianto hinted on Friday that he would warmly welcome his predecessor, Joko "Jokowi" Widodo, should the latter choose to join the Great Indonesia Movement Party (Gerindra).

Jokowi and his family have recently distanced themselves from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), the party that supported him during his two presidential terms and helped secure mayoral victories for his son, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, and son-in-law, Bobby Nasution.

Tensions between Jokowi and PDI-P became evident when the former president implicitly endorsed Prabowo's candidacy in February's presidential election by allowing Gibran, then mayor of Solo, to run as Prabowo's vice-presidential candidate.

PDI-P Secretary-General Hasto Kristiyanto recently said that Jokowi, along with Gibran and Bobby, is no longer aligned with the party due to emerging differences, a situation that has fueled speculation about Jokowi's next political move.

When asked about the possibility of Jokowi joining Gerindra following a dinner meeting at Prabowo’s private residence in South Jakarta, Prabowo expressed openness to the idea.

"Gerindra’s door is always open to Jokowi, but we cannot force him to join," Prabowo told reporters, with Jokowi standing beside him.

Prabowo explained that he invited Jokowi for dinner upon learning that his predecessor was in Jakarta.

Meanwhile, Jokowi downplayed the speculation, saying that the meeting was simply a reciprocal gesture.

“When Mr. President was traveling to Merauke, he made a stop in Solo. Now that I’m in Jakarta, I wanted to visit him because I miss him,” Jokowi said with a smile.

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