The phrase spread during Indonesia's 2024 presidential campaign, when Prabowo Subianto was filmed saying ndasmu etik in response to criticism about ethics and his running mate. Ndasmu is Javanese slang for your head, used as a rude dismissal, and the clip was quickly cut into short audios online. The nickname Wowok, a mocking play on Wowo for Prabowo, helped the sound spread on TikTok and WhatsApp as a joke insult detached from the original speech.