Prabowo: All Indonesians are Shareholders in the Nation's Wealth!
President Prabowo Subianto affirmed that all Indonesian citizens are shareholders in the nation’s wealth. He stated that Indonesia was founded on the philosophy of Pancasila and the principle of kinship. This situation places all citizens as having a right to the nation’s wealth, he said during his speech at the inauguration of the Marsinah Labor Hero Museum and Shelter in Nganjuk, East Java, on Saturday (16/5).
“To all entrepreneurs, I invite you to join together as Indonesia Incorporated. In essence, it is a nation of kinship,” Prabowo said in a live broadcast on the Presidential Secretariat’s YouTube channel.
“So, this entire nation is one corporation. This means that all citizens are shareholders in all of Indonesia’s wealth. All Indonesian people have the right to this wealth,” he added with great enthusiasm.
In his speech, Prabowo mentioned Marsinah’s struggle as a symbol of labor resistance, which, in his opinion, should not have ended tragically if the values of Pancasila were properly implemented. He said that the Marsinah murder case in the past serves as a reminder that the state must stand to protect ordinary people, including laborers.
“The incident of Marsinah being brutally murdered for fighting for factory workers should not have happened at all because our country was founded on the basic philosophy of Pancasila,” he said.
Prabowo stated that the fifth principle of Pancasila, concerning social justice for all Indonesian people, is the main foundation for the state in building a just economic system. According to him, the concept of the Indonesian economy has been regulated from the beginning in Article 33 of the 1945 Constitution, which emphasizes the principle of kinship.
“The rich must help the poor, the strong must help the weak. Laborers are children of the nation, farmers are children of the nation, fishermen are children of the nation,” Prabowo said. He also reminded state officials, including the military and police, that they are part of the people, funded by the state to serve the community.
“The military and police are children of the nation, selected, financed, paid by the people, fed by the people, given shoes by the people, given hats by the people, given ranks by the people,” he said. On that occasion, Prabowo said he was honored to designate Marsinah as a National Hero after all labor organizations unanimously proposed the labor activist’s name.
“I was honored to make her a national hero,” he said. Prabowo also said he was touched when he saw Marsinah’s room and belongings in the newly inaugurated museum.
“I saw her room, which was not changed. I saw her struggle, and I am saddened by the incident,” he said. He believes that the practice of entrepreneurs pursuing profits by sacrificing workers’ rights is not in accordance with the founding principles of the Republic of Indonesia.
“That there is an entrepreneur or business leader who has evil intentions for the sake of great profits, this is not in accordance with the foundation of our republic,” he said. After inaugurating the Marsinah Museum, Prabowo was scheduled to continue his agenda by inaugurating more than 1,000 Merah Putih Village and Urban Cooperatives in various regions of Indonesia.