Remembering 'Bung' Hatta

Remembering 'Bung' Hatta

The centennial of Mohammad Hatta, one of the founding fathers of the country and former first Indonesian vice president, reflects the country's longing for a model leader.

So far, we haven't had a single leader who is honest, thrifty and polite like Hatta, who was known as Bung Hatta.

Most of the current crop of leaders tend to be self-serving and less attentive to the people.

The figure of Bung Hatta is like a beacon that is relevant to the current situation. He was a smart person, who stuck to his commitment to his ideology. He was a father figure, who was a religious socialist.

To some extent we might find these characteristics in President Megawati Soekarnoputri.

When Bung Hatta parted company with Bung Karno (first president Sukarno) he demonstrated his integrity and principles by withdrawing from government without making a fuss.

Let's look to Bung Hatta in such a situation when the country has no model leader.

-- Suara Merdeka, Semarang