When Indonesian President Joko Widodo was first inaugurated in 2014, his eldest son didn't want to be there.

Gibran Rakabuming Raka, then 27, had spent much of his life outside the limelight and "didn't agree with his father's decision to enter politics," said Andi Widjajanto, a former top adviser to Widodo. Gibran only showed up after his paternal grandmother twisted his arm.

On Oct. 20, the once-reluctant princeling will be at another inauguration ceremony — this time as the vice president of retired Gen. Prabowo Subianto, 72, who is succeeding his father as the leader of the nation of 280 million.