Shouts of ''Bapak Jokowi'' greet Joko Widodo at Chow Kit

KUALA LUMPUR: Indonesian President Joko Widodo was greeted like a celebrity when he visited Chow Kit, also known as "Little Jakarta" here today, which was packed with hundreds of people, mostly Indonesians.

Popularly known as Jokowi, the Indonesian leader was accompanied by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Zambry Abdul Kadir.

As soon as Jokowi and Anwar arrived at about 12.30 pm, the two leaders made their way to the popular Chow Kit market, where shouts of "Bapak Jokowi" could be heard.

Some delighted Indonesians sang the Indonesian national anthem "Indonesia Raya" to express their pride in Jokowi's presence at the wet market, where he was mingling with traders and visitors.

Traders and visitors also took the opportunity to shake hands and take selfies with the two leaders.

Today's event was held in conjunction with Jokowi's two-day working visit to Malaysia which began yesterday.

During his working visit, Jokowi is also scheduled to attend a high tea with Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah at Istana Negara at 3 pm today.

Earlier today, Anwar and Jokowi witnessed the exchange of several agreements signed by representatives of ministries and related agencies from both countries at Seri Perdana, Putrajaya.

Among the agreements signed were the Malaysia-Indonesia Border Crossing Agreement, the Treaty Relating to the Delimitation of the Territorial Seas of the Two Countries in the Southernmost Part of the Melaka Straits, and the Delimitation of the Territorial Seas of the Two Countries in the Sulawesi Sea.

The last time Jokowi paid an official visit to Malaysia was in 2019 after he was re-elected for a second term through the presidential election on April 17.

In 2022, Indonesia was the sixth largest trading partner of Malaysia and the second largest in ASEAN with a total trade of RM130.14 billion (US$29.55 billion), an increase of 36.5 per cent compared to RM95.31 billion (US$22.98 billion) in 2021.

-- BERNAMA