President Jokowi Wears the Ageman Songkok Singkepan Ageng Surakarta in the 78th Indonesian Independence Day Ceremony

President Joko Widodo gave a statement to reporters at the Jakarta Presidential Palace, (photo: dock. intermediate)

JAKARTA - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) wore the Ageman Songkok Singkepan Ageng shirt from Surakarta, Central Java, at the 78th Anniversary of the Independence of the Republic of Indonesia at the State Palace on Thursday, August 17.

"This is from the Keraton Surakarta Hadiningrat," Jokowi told reporters before the ceremony began.

The ageman is used by the Kings of Pakubuwono Surakarta Hadiningrat in the Enggar Eggar soho Tedhak Loji event, which means when the king leaves the palace by riding a horse-drawn carriage, followed by palace equipment to go directly to see the condition of his subjects or the people.

In practice, along the way the King distributed money and food as a token of love for his subjects or what is known as Turuba (going down).

This year's Independence Day ceremony of the Republic of Indonesia was once again enlivened by the appearance of invited guests wearing traditional clothes from various regions in Indonesia.

According to Jokowi, this was deliberately done to show the diversity that is owned and is the strength of the Indonesian nation.

"Yes, this is actually the strength of our country, Indonesia's strength, namely diversity that can be united. So if we are united, solid, compact, that is Indonesia's great strength," said the Indonesian president who hails from Surakarta (Solo).

The ceremony for the 78th Anniversary of Indonesian Independence was held at the Merdeka Palace, Jakarta, on Thursday at around 09.00 a.m. Western Indonesian Time (WIB).

This year is expected to be the last Indonesian Independence Day ceremony to be held at the Merdeka Palace in Jakarta, because in 2024 President Joko Widodo is targeting to hold the Republic of Indonesia Independence Day ceremony in the Capital City of the Archipelago (IKN), East Kalimantan.