Leaders and ignorance<\/p>\n
From Rakyat Merdeka<\/p>\n
When President Abdurrahman \"Gus Dur\" Wahid and his assistants
\nbow their heads and put out their hands, palms up, begging the
\nInternational Monetary Fund for mercy, members of the House of
\nRepresentatives and councilors, wearing a tie with a gold
\ninsignia pinned on their chest, walked, chest forward and head
\nup, into a star-rated hotel, lugging their expensive briefcases,
\nor took an expensive trip to spend hundreds of millions of
\nrupiah. Their purported mission: a comparative study.<\/p>\n
Some Indonesians have their houses burned to ashes and many
\nothers have become widows, widowers or refugees. Many children
\nhave been orphaned or have dropped out of school. They can no
\nlonger go to school because of riots. Many people have lost their
\nlimbs or eyes. Quite a few have lost their jobs. While the number
\nof these unfortunate people increase, the President and his
\nassistants and the legislators and councilors vie with one
\nanother to go abroad, again, for a comparative study. People's
\nmoney and government loans have been simply wasted.<\/p>\n
Driving a luxurious car and earning millions of rupiah a
\nmonth, the legislators proudly accept the distribution of the
\nstate budget for their regions. They have never felt sinful or
\nguilty. They don't consider it their job to think about suffering
\npeople. This is really an example of being uncivilized: to live
\nin the lap of luxury amid the plight of common people.<\/p>\n
If our fallen heroes and freedom fighters could speak, they
\nwould ask the following:<\/p>\n
What value do you attach to our bones which have lain
\nscattered?<\/p>\n
How many of us have died for the sake of the unitary state of
\nthe Republic of Indonesia, without receiving salaries, luxury
\ncars or food?<\/p>\n
Does the government keep a record of our descendants after our
\ndeath on the battle field?<\/p>\n
Does the government take care of our descendants?<\/p>\n
Oh, the happy President and the merry legislators, please
\nrepent for prioritizing your personal interests. Stop telling
\nlies. Stop driving luxurious automobiles. Stop spending the loans
\nextravagantly. Please unite our people first. They are as much
\nIndonesian as you. Unfortunately they continue to live in misery
\nand poverty because you have shut fast your conscience about and
\nturned a blind eye and a deaf ear to their plight.<\/p>\n
U. SILABAN<\/p>\n
Ponitianak, West Kalimantan<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/leaders-and-ignorance-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }