The chief executive officer of one of Indonesia's largest ride-hailing firms has reportedly stepped down from his position for a government appointment. Gojek co-founder and CEO Nadiem Makarim vacated his position after he was asked to join the cabinet of Indonesian President Joko Widodo.
Gojek officially announced Makarim's exit on Monday, along with an assurance to the public that its services will be unaffected. The company stated that they had actually already prepared for such a situation, which means that there won't be disruption in its business.
Indonesia's largest startup, worth an estimated $10 billion, had stated that it will be giving an official update on the company's business structure in the coming days.
Meanwhile, the ride-hailing firm did reveal that the company's president, Andre Soelistyo, and co-founder Kevin Aluwi will be taking over Makarim's responsibilities after his exit.
In conjunction with Gojek's announcement, Makarim made his own statements to the public outside of the presidential palace on Monday. The now former-executive mentioned that the appointment to the government position was an "extraordinary honor" for him.
Makarim confirmed that he had already accepted the appointment but declined to comment on what his specific role would be in President Widodo's cabinet.
The 35-year old tech entrepreneur did mention that he and President Widodo already had a long conversation regarding their plans for the country. Part of the plan is apparently to bolster the country's development through implementing policy changing and increasing investments.
Widodo officially won the country's presidential elections in May, successfully securing his second term as its leader. The politician had mentioned in his campaign that he aims to transform Indonesia into an "opulent, just, and prosperous" nation if he won.
Gojek, or otherwise known as PT Aplikasi Karya Anak Bangsa, was originally established in 2010 in Indonesia. The company began its business as a call center that connected couriers to its consumers. The firm then started to offer an app that allowed people to order motorcycle rides around the city and the countryside.
The company eventually expanded into other businesses, which included food delivery services, logistics, medicine delivery, and on-demand groceries. Payments for the company's services were all conveniently available on its mobile payments platform.
The Jakarta-based company soon got the attention of big foreign investors, who provided the company with substantial investments.
Among the largest firms to back the company included Google, Sequoia Capital, and Tencent. With the substantial backing, Gojek soon became large enough to be considered a competitor to other ride-hailing services such as Grab and Uber.
