Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - The unstable political and economic\nsituation once severely limited the income of Indonesia\u2019s President.\nThis was directly experienced by Indonesia\u2019s first President, Soekarno,\nin the early days of independence.<\/p>\n
Shortly after the proclamation, the government set the president\u2019s\nsalary at f.1,000 per month. This amount was stipulated in Government\nDecree No.\u00a01\/O.P, announced in November 1945. The figure was temporary,\nadjusted to the precarious state of the nation at the time. However, for\nthe presidential family, the amount was extremely meagre.<\/p>\n
The First Lady, Fatmawati, recounted in her memoir titled Fatmawati:\nSmall Notes with Bung Karno (2017) that every month she received an\nenvelope containing Bung Karno\u2019s salary, which was a paltry sum.<\/p>\n
That money had to be stretched to cover the family\u2019s food needs and\nother household expenses. This was because there was only one source of\nincome.<\/p>\n
\u201cI myself did not earn money to help meet our needs,\u201d Fatmawati\nrevealed.<\/p>\n
The severely limited conditions were also acknowledged directly by\nSoekarno. In his autobiography Bung Karno: Voice of the Indonesian\nPeople (1965), he admitted to often struggling to meet his family\u2019s\nneeds.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd is there any other head of state who is as impoverished as I am\nand often has to borrow from his aides? My salary is US$200 a month and\nit is not enough to meet my family\u2019s needs,\u201d he recalled.<\/p>\n
Soekarno\u2019s candid account illustrates the harsh economic life even at\nthe level of the head of state in the early days of the republic. The\ncause was inseparable from Indonesia\u2019s situation, which had just been\nborn on 17 August 1945.<\/p>\n
At that time, the nation stood without a solid economic foundation.\nHyperinflation, damaged infrastructure and distribution routes, and an\nunorganised administrative system all contributed to thin state coffers,\nwhile the war to defend independence from the Dutch demanded huge\ncosts.<\/p>\n
The situation worsened after the Dutch implemented an economic\nblockade that hindered exports and imports, making state revenues even\ntighter. As a result, the government had to find various ways to\nsurvive. From pooling resources, smuggling commodities, to selling\nvarious assets that could still generate funds.<\/p>\n
Amid the nation\u2019s near-breathless condition, Soekarno\u2019s salary was\nalso affected. The proclaimer even had to experience a simple life, far\nfrom the luxurious image of a head of state.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/the-nation-in-peril-indonesias-president-received-meagre-pay-and-lived-frugally-1775991062", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }