JAKARTA • Police in Jakarta have arrested a supporter of presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto who threatened to behead President Joko Widodo in a video that went viral on Saturday.
Jakarta Police spokesman Argo Yuwono told The Jakarta Post that the man, identified only as HS, was arrested in Parung district in the city of Bogor, West Java, at 8am yesterday.
Senior Commander Argo said the man was arrested for threatening to behead Mr Joko, widely known as Jokowi, in a video which went viral on social media.
The video shows the man, dressed in a Muslim peci cap and brown jacket, saying: "We, from Poso (of Central Sulawesi), are ready to behead Jokowi. Insya Allah, Allahu Akbar (God willing, God is the greatest). We will behead him."
Others in the video could be seen laughing in support of the man, with a woman adding: "For a change in Indonesia."
The video was allegedly taken during a "people power"-style rally held by supporters of Mr Prabowo in front of the Elections Supervisory Agency in Jakarta on Friday, during which they accused Mr Joko's camp of election fraud after quick count results put the incumbent on course for victory following last month's election.
Soon after the video went viral, a group of Mr Joko's supporters reported the man and the video's creator to the Jakarta Police on Saturday.
Indonesia held its first simultaneous presidential and legislative elections on April 17, the world's biggest single-day polls.
The latest count by the General Elections Commission (KPU), based on the official tabulation of almost 70 per cent of the total ballots cast, shows Mr Joko winning 56.3 per cent of the votes against the former general's 43.7 per cent.
Official results are due to be announced on May 22.
Separately, the Health Ministry has announced that a majority of the more than 100 local polling administrators who died in four provinces following election day had suffered a stroke or heart attack.
More than 162 volunteers died in four provinces - Jakarta, West Java, Riau Islands and South-east Sulawesi - after working long hours on April 17. Data from the KPU showed that most of those who died were between 50 and 70 years old. According to government data, 496 polling administrators died after election day across the country.
Health Ministry secretary-general Oscar Primadi called on the public to refrain from speculating on the causes of the officials' death. He also dismissed accusations that the deaths had been orchestrated.
THE JAKARTA POST/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
