Smart Megawati<\/p>\n
Being smart is different from being clever. Megawati is not
\nsaid to be clever; she is said to be smart. Prof. Budiyatna said
\nthat it was not right for Megawati to say she disagrees with
\nAbdurrahman Wahid's stepping down. Professor, you have forgotten
\nthat Megawati is actually very smart. Being smart is more
\nvaluable than just being clever. A professor is clever but he is
\nnot necessarily smart. When Habibie was president, a professor
\nwas assigned to trace Soeharto's assets abroad. Unfortunately, as
\nhe was not smart, he returned home quickly and said that Soeharto
\ndid not keep his assets, not even a cent, abroad.<\/p>\n
Once a customs officer on duty at Kemayoran Airport saw a
\npassenger leave the airplane lugging a piece of bamboo along with
\nsome other luggage. He suspected the bamboo contained a bird that
\nwas forbidden to be transported off the island. As he was smart,
\nhe whistled and the bird hidden in the bamboo whistled back,
\nmaking it easy for the officer to take custody of the passenger.<\/p>\n
Prior to the last general election, there was a fuss about
\nletting a woman become president, but Megawati did not get angry.
\nEven when a professor expressed doubt about her religious faith,
\nMegawati kept cool. She simply went on a haj pilgrimage for the
\numpteenth time. Here lies Megawati's smartness. Finally, her
\nparty won the election although toward the end of it there were
\nleaflets saying things to discredit her. Megawati knew precisely
\nhow to win popular sympathy. The more she was subjected to
\ncondemnation, the more the people were willing to sympathize with
\nher.<\/p>\n
It is difficult to separate Megawati from Abdurrahman. Their
\nfriendship has gone back a long way. Before the last general
\nelection, both paid homage to their family's graves, giving the
\nimpression that it was Abdurrahman who has for all these years
\nled Megawati to maturity, especially when she was subjected to
\ncondemnation. Thanks to Abdurrahman, Megawati became acquainted
\nwith Prof. Amien Rais, Gen. (ret) Wiranto and Sri Sultan Hamengku
\nBuwono X. So when the relationships soured between Gus Dur and
\nAmien Rais, and then Akbar Tandjung and some other figures, and
\nthen Megawati flirted with shaking Abdurrahman's presidency,
\nMegawati knew all too well what is pure persuasion and what is
\npersuasion with an ulterior motive. It was still fresh in her
\nmind how the grim July 27 tragedy came about and also how
\nslanderous the leaflets attempting to negate her success story
\nwere distributed to discredit her.<\/p>\n
Megawati's father, the late Bung Karno, who proclaimed
\nIndonesia's independence on Aug. 17, 1945, was very well
\nacquainted with Muhammadiyah, a social Muslim organization. He
\nliked Muhammadiyah so much that he named his first child Mohammad
\nGuntur and his second Diyah Permata Megawati Soekarnoputri.
\nHistory cannot be faked although many people have tried to fake
\nit. May Abdurrahman and Megawati's partnership symbolize the
\nunity between NU and Muhammadiyah.<\/p>\n
H. IFRODI SUKANTO<\/p>\n
Jakarta<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/smart-megawati-1447899208", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }