Lora Shofwan: The Independence and Sovereignty of NU Are the Heart That Must Be Guarded

Jakarta, VIVA – The caretaker of the Sembilangan Islamic Boarding School in Bangkalan, Madura, KH Muhammad Shofwan Taj, considers it reasonable for Nahdliyyin to be suspicious of the composition of the organising committee for the 35th NU Congress, as well as the implementation of the Ulama Conference and the Ulama National Meeting. The suspicion is not only about the figures and the structure of the core committee, but also concerns the very heart and soul of the organisation, which seems to be at stake in the decisions of the plenary meeting of the Nahdlatul Ulama Executive Board (PBNU). “Nahdliyyin are examining closely the preparations for the 35th NU Congress, along with the Ulama Conference and the Ulama National Meeting. The initial response is filled with suspicion. This is not just an ordinary anomaly, but a strong signal of a directional shift and potential upheaval,” he stated in his comments on Friday, 3 April 2026. The man commonly known as Lora Shofwan said that the duty of the Rais Aam and the General Chairman of PBNU as mandataries of the 34th Congress is to organise the next congress, namely the 35th Congress, jointly. This responsibility should proceed linearly and be delegated proportionally within the structure of the Rais Aam and his deputies, as well as the General Chairman of PBNU and his team. In this regard, the syuriyah function is carried out through the role of the steering committee (SC), while the tanfidziyah function is borne by the organising committee (OC). “However, suspicions are emerging that in the PBNU meeting, the Chairman of the SC is the Katib Aam (KH Said Asrori), while the Secretary of the SC is the Rais PBNU (Prof M Nuh). The question is, why not the Deputy Rais Aam? Similarly, for the OC, the Chairman is held by the Secretary General (Gus Ipul), while the Secretary position is held by the Deputy General Chairman, H Amin Said Husni. This core committee composition does not appear to follow the usual standards, and the placement of figures based on their positions feels odd and disproportionate,” he explained. He added that the four figures in this core committee had previously faced off as rivals in PBNU conflicts. KH Said Asrori and Prof M Nuh were once in the same position as Katib Aam from two different factions. Likewise, Gus Ipul and H Amin Said Husni had confronted each other in the position of PBNU Secretary General. Simply put, this gives the impression that the congress committee is under the control of figures who have competed for the same strategic positions.