Statement of President of the Republic of Indonesia during the Meeting with MotoGP Racers, at the Merdeka Palace, Jakarta, March 16, 2022
President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)
Bismillahirrahmanirrahim.
Assalamu’alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.
Together we were just having a send-off ceremony for the international racers prior to their competition at Mandalika Circuit on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. We also know that alhamdulillah the 60,000 tickets that we have issued have been sold out and we hope that this can be a new brand of our country that Indonesia now has MotoGP circuit that is on par with that of other countries.
Until we meet again in Mandalika.
Thank you.
Reporter
Indonesia has set a target of gaining benefit as much as Rp500 billion from MotoGP, is it possible?
President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)
Well, we will calculate how much we earn after the event is finished. We will calculate it after the event is finished on Sunday. One thing is for sure, we clearly need a lot of hotel accommodation in Mandalika.
Reporter
Bapak usually rides motorcycle, but why didn’t you join the racers and ride motorcycle?
President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)
I have mentioned before that I did not ride motorcycle for a security reason.
Reporter
Are you going to watch MotoGP directly in Mandalika?
President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)
Yes, I will watch it there, but maybe only a day.
Reporter
Is it on Sunday, Pak?
President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)
It may be Friday/Saturday/Sunday, only a day, but I do not know yet.
Reporter
[Inaudible]
President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)
Well, Indonesia is also participating, but in Moto3, Mario (Mario Suryo Aji) will be participating. He is our newcomer and we hope that he can upgrade his level to compete in MotoGP.
Reporter
What were you talking about with Marquez and the MotoGP racers?
President of the Republic of Indonesia (Joko Widodo)
I was just saying that Indonesia has 122 million motorcycles, 122 million motorcycles. So, I told them they have huge fans in Indonesia, and they were happy to hear that.
(AW/MUR)