Don't Lean on the Godfather, Lean on God

The Rector of Universitas Harkat Negeri (UHN), Sudirman Said, has called upon state officials to anticipate governance crises by ceasing the worship of the personification of power and returning to a reliance on values and institutions.

He summarised this appeal in one simple sentence: do not rely on the godfather, rely on God. By ‘godfather’, he does not merely refer to cartel bosses seen on the silver screen, but rather to the character of power that is centralised within a single figure.

Sudirman cited a series of names that once held immense power in their eras, such as Pablo Escobar, Al Capone, Don Corleone, and even Hitler, noting that they have all ultimately passed away. “The godfathers fade, while good order remains. Therefore, our loyalty should be to eternal values, not to transient figures,” Sudirman stated during a technical guidance session for PKS DPRD members across Kalimantan in Jakarta on Saturday (13/06/2026).

According to Sudirman, the temptation of the personification of power strengthens when politics loses its long-term orientation. He referenced economist Dambisa Moyo, who, in ‘Edge of Chaos’, assesses that politicians are currently more preoccupied with winning elections than nurturing the long-term health of their nations.

This condition, according to Moyo, gives rise to a ‘mediocracy’, where politics is driven by short-term interests rather than substantive policy. “In spaces impoverished of long-term ideas, individuals replace systems, and personal loyalty displaces public accountability,” Sudirman remarked.