Indonesia President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo will today announce new ministers for his second-term cabinet. Nadiem Makarim, the CEO and founder of local tech titan Gojek, says he has formally accepted a role within the government and will resign from the company he started.
Gojek CEO Nadiem Makarim onstage at Tech in Asia Jakarta 2016 / Photo credit: Tech in Asia
Makarim was summoned today to the State Palace by the president to accept the cabinet appointment, according to a Gojek spokesperson.
“We have planned for this possibility and there will be no disruption to our business,” the spokesperson added.
With Makarim’s departure, Andre Soelistyo and Kevin Aluwi – Gojek’s group president and co-founder, respectively – were named as co-CEOs, ushering in a new era for the Indonesian startup.
In an internal announcement obtained by Tech in Asia, the newly chosen head execs said that in the coming days, they will share detailed plans on what Makarim’s exit means for Gojek.
It has long been speculated that Makarim will become part of Jokowi’s cabinet, with the president saying on numerous occasions that he wants to pick state ministers from a younger generation.
There were also rumors that the founder of the country’s first startup unicorn would be named as the minister in charge of either education or small and medium-sized businesses.
Campaign chairman Erick Thohir said the president needed the younger prospects to shore up his focus on human resources development in his second term. “[Jokowi] sees such figures as supporting his vision,” Thohir added.
Up until the announcement, neither Gojek nor Makarim had commented on reports about him joining the new cabinet.
But Jusuf Kalla, Indonesia’s vice president, previously said that while the CEO had achieved success in running and growing Gojek to the unicorn that it is now, Makarim would be better served by focusing on his company.
Update (October 21, 2019, 1:30 pm): Added details from a Gojek statement and an internal announcement from new co-CEOs Andre Soelistyo and Kevin Aluwi.
Editing by Charmaine de Lazo and Terence Lee
(And yes, we’re serious about ethics and transparency. More information here.)
Stay updated on the go with our mobile app.
Get latest insights with smoother, more personalized experience through TIA mobile app.
