Attending PSI Kupang Regional Coordination Meeting, Jokowi: Don't Go to Solo for Everything
The 7th President of Indonesia, Joko Widodo (Jokowi), shared a joke during his speech at the Regional Coordination Meeting (Rakorda) of the Indonesian Solidarity Party (PSI) DPD in Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), on Saturday afternoon, an event attended by hundreds of PSI cadres.
In his address, Jokowi urged PSI cadres to remain embedded within the community and to resolve public issues through the party’s organisational levels. “Listen to their complaints, help resolve existing problems. If possible, resolve them yourselves. If you cannot, convey it and ask for help from the DPD Chairman. If you still cannot, ask for help from the DPW Chairman. If it is still not possible, going to Solo is also fine. But do not go to Solo for every little thing,” said Jokowi, which was met with laughter from the PSI cadres.
Jokeway stated that PSI cadres must not lose their connection with the people, but must instead be consistently present and provide tangible benefits to the public. “We must not lose our footing, which is being close to the daily lives of our people. We must be consistently present, and PSI must be able to provide real benefits that can be felt directly by the people,” he said.
He also requested that the party structure should not be formed merely as a formality, but should be truly active and working within the community. Cadres should be present in various community activities, whether during celebrations or during times of misfortune. “If the people are happy, for example, there is a wedding, attend. If a neighbour has a birthday, come. And also when our people are in hardship, such as a death, attend. If a neighbour is ill, visit and check on them. If the people are facing a disaster, be present. Ideally, you can even bring assistance. That is a living and working structure, a functional structure, not just a formality,”
Furthermore, he requested that cadres become more active in introducing PSI to the public. According to him, the level of public recognition for PSI still needs to be increased. “PSI is currently known by only 78 per cent of the Indonesian people, and only 48 per cent of our people know the PSI logo. Therefore, we must work to introduce ourselves, so that the people know that the PSI logo is an elephant.”