Prabowo: Successful Nations Are United and Magnanimous
Jakarta (ANTARA) - President Prabowo Subianto believes that a nation which is successful, great, and able to bring prosperity to its people is one that is united and possesses a great spirit.
“There are things I have learned from studying the history of human civilisation. There are things I have gained that I truly believe. A successful nation, a great nation, a nation that can achieve prosperity for its people is a nation that is united, a nation with a great spirit, not a small one,” said Prabowo in West Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara, on Friday.
The President said this view was drawn from his ongoing study of the history of human civilisation.
According to Prabowo, an advanced nation is not one filled with resentment, division, envy, spite, and suspicion between groups.
Prabowo holds that the Indonesian people must respect and love their own nation, because no other nation will show greater care for Indonesia.
The President reminded that efforts to divide the nation have taken place since the past through the politics of divide et impera (divide and rule). Therefore, unity must be continuously safeguarded.
“Only by loving the motherland do we truly love the Indonesian nation. We must respect and love our own nation. No other nation will respect us, no other nation will take pity on us. Indeed, from long ago they have wanted to divide us, divide et impera,” he said.
According to Prabowo, leaders must adopt an attitude of magnanimity and open-heartedness for the greater interest of the nation.
On that occasion, the President also touched on Indonesia’s experience of colonisation lasting hundreds of years, humiliation, and the exploitation of its natural wealth.
The President noted that to this day there are still certain parties who look down on Indonesia. There remain certain groups, nations, and states that envy Indonesia’s wealth and have an interest in taking advantage of that wealth, including by dividing Indonesia.
“There are certain groups, certain nations, certain countries that envy us, who envy us because we are rich, who think about how to steal our wealth, and if possible, how to make Indonesia fall apart,” he said.
Furthermore, the President declared that he would not surrender when the people’s interests are under threat, especially in efforts to tackle poverty and hunger.
Prabowo stated that meeting food needs is a crucial requirement for a country’s success.
“I cannot bear to see the Indonesian people poor, I cannot bear it. I cannot bear to see Indonesian children going hungry, I cannot bear it. Whatever a handful of elites in Jakarta may say that an empty stomach is unimportant, I disagree. If there are Indonesian people going hungry, that matters to me,” said Prabowo.
“No country can succeed if it cannot produce food for its own people. And, thank God, Indonesia is now able to provide food for its own people,” he concluded.