Family says horror bus driver a 'good guy'<\/p>\n
By Ahyani<\/p>\n
BANDUNG (JP): Looking into Salam's face is like looking into a
\npool of sorrow and confusion. All of a sudden he and his family
\nhave come under public scrutiny because his son-in-law, Agus
\nArifin, caused the deaths of 31 people.<\/p>\n
Many people, even complete strangers, have come to his simple
\nabode since the tragic accident last Saturday.<\/p>\n
Agus was the driver of the Kramatdjati bus which smashed into
\na Toyota jeep, leading 31 people to horrific deaths.<\/p>\n
\"Agus cares a lot about his wife and daughter,\" Salam told
\nreporters.<\/p>\n
Agus married Rusmini, in 1992, and has an eight-month-old
\ndaughter.<\/p>\n
Salam, a becak (three-wheel pedicab) driver, said that Agus
\nshowers his family with love and affection every time he has a
\nchance to come home.<\/p>\n
\"Usually, he comes home once every three days, gives his wife
\nsome money and collects some clean clothes before going back to
\nwork,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Agus does not have a fixed salary. When he returns home, he
\ncould bring with him between Rp 75,000 and Rp 100,000 (US$33 to
\n$44).<\/p>\n
\"The money he earns depends on the number of passengers he
\ncarries. I don't know exactly how much he earns,\" Salam said.<\/p>\n
Agus has worked for the Kramatdjati bus company for two
\nmonths. He previously worked for three bus companies, Sahabat, JS
\nand Dwi Karya, which served the Bandung-Cirebon route. Agus was
\nonce employed as a chauffeur.<\/p>\n
When he was with the Dwi Karya company, he was named as the
\ncompany's best driver.<\/p>\n
Salam said Agus does not talk much.<\/p>\n
\"He is quiet and talks only when necessary. I don't know what
\nhe is like outside the home, but when he is at home, he never
\ntakes liquor or pills like the newspapers reported,\" he said.<\/p>\n
As our conversation continued, Salam said that his daughter is
\nAgus' second wife.<\/p>\n
\"His first wife, who was from Jatiwangi, Cirebon, died. Agus
\nhas a child from his first marriage, who is now living with his
\ngrandparents in Jatiwangi,\" Salam said.<\/p>\n
He added that as Agus covers the Bandung-Cirebon route, he
\noften stops by to see his son.<\/p>\n
Salam remembered a time when Agus could not return home as
\nthere were many passengers wanting transport.<\/p>\n
\"He told a bus conductor to bring the money home,\" he said.<\/p>\n
At that time the family was in bad need of money and his wife
\nhad to pawn their daughter's jewelry, which the family bought as
\nan investment. With the money, his wife retrieve the jewelry from
\nthe pawnbroker.<\/p>\n
Salam has seven children. Rusmini is the sixth. Some of
\nSalam's children work in Kalimantan, West Timor and Cirebon.<\/p>\n
One of Salam's children, Dede Supriyadi, is a construction
\nworker in Bandung. He lives with his parents, Agus and Rusmini
\nand their daughter in a small stuffy house in an alley of Jl.
\nEmbong.<\/p>\n
Rusmini, 26, and Intan, her daughter, have been in Bogor since
\nWednesday.<\/p>\n
\"She said she had to go there for police' questioning and to
\nsee Agus, who is in police detention,\" he said, showing the
\nwarrant for Agus' arrest.<\/p>\n
The warrant was signed by Major Wahyu Suhendra of the Bogor
\npolice.<\/p>\n
Salam said Agus' detention is in God's hands.<\/p>\n
There is one thing that confuses him: many people are offering
\nhim legal aid.<\/p>\n
\"There is one person who said he'd been appointed by the
\npolice to defend Agus. I know nothing about law and I have no
\nmoney to hire any lawyer,\" he said, showing a number of name
\ncards left by lawyers who came to his house.<\/p>\n
Salam expressed regret that Kramatdjati did not send an
\nemployee to his house to tell him about the accident.<\/p>\n
\"I learned about it from other people, the TV and journalists
\nwho came here,\" he said before showing reporters the door, as he
\nhad to leave for work with his becak.<\/p>\n
The family's life will probably never be the same. Salam, his
\ndaughter and granddaughter may have to bear the brunt of so many
\npeople's fury, people whose loved ones either perished or are
\ntraumatized by their ordeal. The family will carry the burden of
\nbeing related to a man who caused the terrible deaths of so many
\npeople.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/family-says-horror-bus-driver-a-good-guy-1447893297",
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