The Running Man

A MUSIC video released by singer Ahmad Dhani, dressed in an SS uniform of World War II Nazi forces, to gain support for presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto, was what led supporters of the rival candidate, Joko Widodo, to come up with a campaign gimmick of their own. Understandably, Ahmad Dhani's video got a thumbs-down around the world, which had its repercussion in the presidential campaign at home. On top of that, Dhani used music from rock band Queen's song We Will Rock You without the permission of the copyright holders.

At a meeting with his campaign workers three weeks ago, Joko Widodo asked his team to involve celebrities and artists in the final week of the campaign, before the July 9 election day. He pointed out how Dhani's fans defended him in social media, even though his video campaign was widely criticized. "Pak Jokowi noticed that artists had many loyal fans among young voters," said Andi Widjajanto, the Jokowi campaign team secretary, last week.

July 15, 2014