DPD Member from Bali Apologises After Reposting Fake News

A member of the Regional Representative Council (DPD) RI representing Bali, Shri I Gusti Ngurah Arya Wedakarna (AWK), issued a public apology after reposting information proven to be untrue on social media. The apology was delivered by AWK upon receiving a visit from dozens of senior journalists affiliated with the Association of Journalists (PENA) NTT Bali at the DPD RI Bali office in Renon, Denpasar, on Monday (30/3). The meeting was tense before culminating in clarification. The case stemmed from a post claiming that a Kompas.com journalist with initials VSG was the perpetrator of the rape of a foreign tourist. In fact, the journalist was at the Bali Police Headquarters attending the case review. In front of the journalists, AWK admitted the mistake in the reposted content from the social media account KuatBaca.com. He stated that the error was made by the admin team managing the account. “For that, on behalf of the DPD admin team, I apologise if there are any shortcomings that made the situation uncomfortable,” said AWK. He emphasised that there was no malicious intent in the post and promised to be more cautious in presenting information in the future, especially sensitive matters. CLARIFICATION MOMENTUM Meanwhile, Emanuel Dewata Oja, Chairman of Advisors for PENA NTT Bali, said their visit was initially to deliver a letter of condemnation to AWK. However, the direct meeting with AWK became a moment for clarification. “This is a blessing in disguise. A coincidence that we indeed hoped for. Thus, the two demands of PENA NTT, namely clarification within 1x24 hours and a public apology, were directly carried out by AWK,” said the man familiarly known as Edo. Edo stressed that the steps taken by the journalists were a form of intellectual movement. He also reminded of the importance of accountability for public officials in using social media. “Verifying information is very important, so as not to be dragged into the perception that public officials are spreading wrong or fake news,” he said. In addition to the direct apology, PENA NTT Bali also hopes that AWK will issue the apology through his social media account. As of this report, the apology has not yet been published on social media.